Stars and Cherry Blossoms
by Laura's court
Summary: After the Fourth Great Shinobi War and, ultimately, the deaths of all her friends and teammates, Sakura Haruno finds herself in a galaxy far, far away.
1. Tatooine

_She was bored._

_Yes, it was as simple as that. She was bored, and so, with a little magic (or, rather, a few calculations), she decided to spice things up a bit._

_I say "she," but the giant magical sentient super-computer that runs the entire Multiverse doesn't really have a specific gender. Those few lucky enough to see it and listen to its divine voice would say that it was female; and perhaps this all powerful computer doesn't actually "run" (or control as you are probably interpreting from the word) the Multiverse. Rather, it supervises or directs the flow of energy between dimensions, checking for any anomalies within the vast river that connects all the different worlds of the Multiverse._

_Still, she/he/it was bored._

_As it was, she decided to do something about it. The decision was to complete a record of one whose life had ended in one dimension and continue it in another. She picked a random life form using a complex algorithm, and with the same algorithm, chose the dimension to put that life form in._

_So it was that I, Sakura Haruno, a medical ninja from Konohagakure of the Country of Fire, found myself on the bright planet of Tatooine._

* * *

I thought I had died.

I wished I _had_ died.

Naruto's smiling face was burned forever into my mind's eye as he lay on the ground dying. My tears staining his face, and Sasuke's laughter, like nails on chalkboard, screeching through my ears. I silently thanked Naruto for everything he had done for me as I stood up to face this man I once professed to love. I couldn't save Naruto, but I sure as hell wasn't about to let Sasuke get away with what he had done.

"What're you gonna do, Sakura?" he laughed like the deranged psychopath he had become. "Kakashi's dead and so is Naruto." He was gloating, trying not show how exhausted he really was. "Even all the Rookie Nine is dead, and you couldn't save any of them. So what makes you think you're going to be able to stop me?"

He was right. Since I had graduated from the Academy all those years ago, I had been nothing but useless, nothing but a burden to Naruto and Kakashi. I thought my training with Tsunade would alleviate that, but it didn't. I wasn't strong enough to protect or help any of them, but I didn't care anymore. It wasn't like it mattered now. They were all dead, and I was going to use every jutsu I knew to bring Sasuke down.

"You know, now that I think about it," Sasuke laughed, covering his eyes with his hand as he thought back. "You couldn't kill me that one time. I guess you were still in love with me the-" He was cut off when my fist made contact with his face sending him hurling back several feet. I was low on chakra, but I had more fuel left then he did. Naruto's nearly endless supply of energy had worn him down considerably.

However, that didn't mean I had an advantage here. Sasuke didn't need a whole lot of chakra to use the sharingan. He couldn't use the Mangekyou, anymore, so that was a good start. If I wanted any sort of leverage, I had to blind him first.

Easier said then done.

I caught up to him before he could recover, pulling out a kunai. When I reached him, however, he caught my arm and looked me in the eye, his sharingan a blazing reminder of the hatred that burned his soul away.

"What's the matter Sakura?" he asked, that maniacal tone burning my ears. "I thought you loved me?"

"I only love one man," I snapped before my clone vanished in a puff of smoke. He turned just in time for me to stick the tag over his eyes. He reached up to pull it off when it exploded.

"And you killed him," I whispered quietly to myself as he shrieked in pain. I thanked Naruto one last time for teaching me the shadow clone jutsu. I couldn't use it like he could, but one was all I needed.

"You bitch!" he screamed. The blast hadn't been large enough to kill him, which was a shame, but it did what I needed it to.

A small part of myself was screaming at me, telling me to stop. It was the same part of me that had stopped me from killing him the last time I had tried. I looked over at Naruto's dead body, still smiling after he had told me how much he loved me. Tears trickled down my cheeks as that small bit of innocence within me grew absolutely silent. I felt black, bitter rage fill my chest as I turned to Sasuke, the sound of a thousand birds chirping filling the air around us.

"You've lost your eye sight, and you killed your own medic some time ago," I said. "You can't win this fight."

"You think you can beat me?" Sasuke barked. He turned towards me, his eyes shut tight. The burns were extensive, even I would have trouble healing that. "Ha! If Naruto couldn't do it, what makes you think you can?"

"You can't see, Sasuke," I replied calmly. The bitter black rage turned ice cold, and all I wanted was to see his blood. "You're low on chakra, and you're not thinking straight. Stop this."

"Shut up! I'll kill everyone of you before I stop!" screamed Sasuke. He was past all reasoning. In his desperation and hate, he would slip up, give me openings, and that was all I needed. He charged at me, his Chidori screeching for my blood. I dodged it and brought my fist to his jaw, shattering it on impact. Now, there'd be no room for talk.

Sasuke's sword had already been destroyed in his fight with Naruto. All he had left to fight with was taijutsu and maybe a kunai and shuriken, but I had a slight reserve of chakra left. Sasuke was good, even without his sharingan, but he couldn't even open his eyes to look at me. Since he was so desperate and angry, he couldn't think clearly anymore. It was do or die now.

Having watched him in his fight with Naruto, I knew how he would come after me. He would lead with his left since he was left handed, but to throw me off, he would attack me with his right. When he did just that, I countered by dodging his punch connecting my left knee to his abdomen. As he doubled over in pain, I brought my elbow down to his head.

His head never made contact with the ground. Recovering from both blows rather quickly, he put his hands down to cushion the blow and flipped himself over, landing on his feet. He turned towards me and smirked. He couldn't talk; he couldn't even _see_, but I knew what he was thinking. It was almost as if he was projecting his thoughts into mine.

_You've improved a lot, haven't you?_

He was trying to frustrate me, make me slip up. However, the cold anger in my veins kept me cool, level headed. He now knew that attacking me wasn't going to work. He was going to have to listen and feel for my movement, but for someone who had relied on the prediction of his sharingan for most of his shinobi career, this was going to be difficult for him.

That did not mean, however, that I didn't have to cautious. This man had killed nearly everyone Obito and Madara had failed to kill. I was the last of Konoha 11, the last of the "Rookie 9." There was no one left for me to heal. I was Konoha's last hope for survival. I thought of the people I knew. Shopkeepers, children, strangers I'd run into on the street and all the patients I had met while working at Konoha's hospital. All of them were now depending on me to stop this madman, my childhood crush, Naruto's best friend.

_I love you, Sakura-chan. I'm sorry._

I ran at him, attacking him with my right. He dodged and tried to sweep my legs out from underneath me, but I had already jumped up above him. I brought my chakra enhanced foot down onto his leg, smashing it to bits. I heard him scream through his clenched jaw and mouth. He probably had a broken rib or two as well as some bruises I couldn't see. I was tempted to try and find out. Now I was sure Sasuke realized that feeling for my movements was not going to work. So, he came up with a different plan and stopped moving all together, which baffled me slightly, but I didn't care anymore. Naruto's last words to me kept repeating themselves like a broken record.

_I'm sorry._

"Now it's my turn to talk!" I shouted at him, that cold anger turned into a blazing fire. "I could preach to you. Tell you about the people you've murdered today, but you know all about it already. You don't care. You lost your soul long ago." I pulled out one of my kunai. Hot tears burning my eyelids. "Now you can join the rest of your clan in hell!"

That last bit must have triggered something inside him because as I lifted my kunai above my head, the desire to plunge it into his heart burning my fingers, he opened his eyes, his Eternal Mangekyou Sharingan blazing bright. What I saw reflected in those ruby red eyes forced a gasp to escape my lungs and drop him. It was just in time, too. He had intended to use Amaterasu on me, but the damage to his eyes was too extensive.

He screams slowly faded away as the black flames consumed him. The reflection of me in his eyes would haunt me for the rest of my life. The hatred in me, it was a reflection of himself, and that hatred had just devoured him alive in the form of the black fire of Amaterasu. It would happen to me if I held on to this murderous rage inside of me.

Gasping for air as the blood in my veins simmered back to its normal pace, I turned back to Naruto's body. I felt the tears well up again, and this time, I didn't bother holding them back.

"Naruto?" I whimpered. "I-I don't know… if you can hear me… but I… we won… Sasuke… I stopped him… Naruto? Re-remember when I told you that I loved you… You kind of… well I suppose you didn't really reject me, but you didn't believe me. I don't blame you at all. I-I hope you know that." I had crawled over to his body and laid down next to him. His body was cold, making me cry harder. I nuzzled my face into his cold cheek. "B-but, I was telling you the truth. I love you. I love you so much. It hurts. I just wish… I wish I had figured it out sooner… you know? You… you've always loved me, no matter how horrible I treated you, and I regret that.

"I miss you!" I was sobbing uncontrollably at this point, but I didn't care. This was more for myself then it was for Naruto's sake. He was dead, after all. "Please, I need your smile. I need your laughter, your perverted ninjutsu. I need you."

He wasn't coming back. Neither was anyone else. They were all gone, and I wanted to join them. They wouldn't want that for me, though. Naruto would want me to live on with him in my heart. So there I laid, crying my heart out, despair and grief consuming me. I could hear the other survivors, mourning their dead. I would eventually join them in gathering up the bodies, but for now, I would just cry.

As the stars twinkled like tiny crystals, I let my exhaustion overwhelm me and send me off into the bliss of dreamless sleep.

* * *

I don't know how long I slept, but when I finally awoke, the sun was bright. Too bright. I blinked into the light, my eyes adjusting slowly. I sat up and took a deep breath and realized my mouth tasted like bloody sand. I immediately tried to spit and cough it out.

"Naruto?" All around me, replacing the bodies of my friends, there was nothing but sand for miles around. It was as though someone had dropped me off in the middle of the desert on the way to Sunagakure. Panic brought me to life as I looked around to see how I got there. There were no drag marks in the sand or any sort of prints that I could see. Nothing to explain how I got there. I found an unusual kunai with some sort of seal on it, and I recognized it. It was Naruto's teleportation kunai, and my Konoha forehead protector.

"Gosh, it can't be but barely afternoon, why is it… so… bright?" I looked up and could have sworn I saw two suns.

"Okay, that can't be right." I quickly checked myself for any head trauma I might have suffered during my fight with Sasuke, but to my surprise, I wasn't hurt anywhere. All the injuries I had suffered through out the whole battle, from the fight with Madara and Obito to my fight with Sasuke. It was as if I had never been there. I was even in my regular clothes, red top, black shorts, pale skirt and arm covers, black gloves and sandal boots. Even the fanny pack I used was fully stocked with kunai, shuriken, scrolls that sealed some of my medicinal herbs, my cloak, and my small flask filled with water. I looked up again, and sure enough, there were _two_ suns in the sky. A little confused, I figured my first step into figuring out where I was would be to find some sort of civilization nearby.

I knew I wasn't dreaming from the way my skin burned under the glare of the two suns. Tying my forehead protector into it's usual place and tucking Naruto's kunai into my pouch, I pulled out my cloak and tossed it over my shoulders to protect my skin from the harmful UV rays. I pulled the hood over my head and dashed towards a rock formation I saw some distance away.

After awhile, conserving what water I could, I was beginning to think what I was seeing was a mirage or something, but I finally came up on it and found myself at the edge of a deep canyon or valley. Lying at the bottom was a rather large town that I didn't recognize. I would have to be careful, as I knew nothing of the laws or even the language if they didn't speak mine. I would just have to observe and stay out of sight if I could.

I jumped from ledge to ledge, being careful enough not to slip and fall. When I entered the town, I was overwhelmed by the sights and sounds. Creatures I had never seen before moved about through the streets, some large enough to carry passengers. I saw vehicles and machines doing things I didn't think were possible, darting to and fro while hovering over the ground. It was amazing and frightening all at once, but I remained calm and tried not to look odd as I moved through the bustling avenues. Moving covertly through the streets, I strained myself to listen to the conversations being spoken around me, and I began to panic because a lot of what I heard, I didn't understand until finally I heard a language I recognized, my own. Some soldiers (who oddly enough reminded me of the samurai from Iron Country) were speaking to a couple of people about their robots.

"How long have you had these 'droids?"

"Three or four seasons, I guess."

"Their up for sale if you want them-and the price is right."

"Did you come up from the south?"

"No… no, we live in the west, near Bestine township."

"Bestine?" There was a moments pause. "Let me see your identification!"

Just grateful to hear something familiar, I took off towards what looked like a cantina of some sort. At least, I hoped it was. Plenty of people were coming and going, and all I really wanted was to find some shelter from the sun. As soon as I entered, however, it took everything I had not to let the smell of smoke and alcohol knock me off my feet. Even in this strange world I was now in, alcohol still had the same pungent smell. The sights and sounds were the next to try and overpower me, but I managed to adjust and just hide in the corner.

Taking a small sip of water from my flask, I watched as two others and their 'droids, I assumed that's what they were called, came in after me. The older gentleman went straight for the bar, ordering a drink for himself. The other, a young boy, not much older then myself, looked around with wide eyes, clearly overwhelmed by what he saw. I wondered for a moment if he was like me, from a whole other world altogether. However, from the look of his clothes, I could guess that wasn't the case. He was from this planet, but perhaps he had just never been in a cantina like this. Come to think of it, neither had I. Even as Tsunade's pupil and all.

"Hey! We don't serve their kind here," said the bartender.

"What?" the boy replied rather dumbly.

"Your 'droids," the man replied rather impatiently. "They'll have to wait outside."

A group of aliens and humans studied the boy and his droids in a decidedly unfriendly fashion. A wave of protective instinct kicked in as I edged closer to the boy. I could feel the murderous intent from one or two of the creatures in that pack.

"You better go wait out by the speeder," he said to the droids. "We don't want any trouble in here."

"I heartily agree with you sir," replied the droid. The fact that it replied at all nearly threw me through a loop, but I recovered quickly enough as I followed the boy to the counter. He asked the bartender, the same man who had so roughly told him to get his droids out, for a drink. I quickly grabbed the seat next to him, throwing the hood of my cloak back.s

"Hey," I said as seductively as I could manage, batting my eyelashes a little. He took a quick glance at me, but then, for whatever reason, he did a double take, eyes widening as he stared at me. "My name's Sakura. What's your name?"

"Uh…" was the stunned reply I received. I nudged him under the table to snap him out of it. "Um… my name's Luke."

"Luke? That's a nice name," I said. The older man he had been with took a small glance at me, as did the enormous… eight foot monkey thing he was talking to. I got a feeling, however, that creature was a lot more intimidating if you knew what it actually was. It (he?) looked at me curiously, as if he had never seen me here before. I just smiled seductively as I turned my attention back to Luke.

"So Luke, what brings you here?"

Before Luke could answer my question, he was shoved from behind, so hard he almost fell out of his seat. He turned to the offending creature angrily, but his anger spent out into astonishment. The being had bulbous eyes and was, decidedly (obviously), not human.

"_Negola dewaghi wooldugger?_" the creature bubbled challengingly.

"Hey!" I shouted, giving the creature a good shove with my foot. I didn't use my chakra, but it still was enough to make the creature nearly stumble and fall. "I was talking to him first!"

The shove surprised him (I was assuming it was a "him"), but rather then leave the two of us alone like I had hoped, he roared at me angrily in his strange language, his attention now on me and not on Luke. I pretended to ignore him when he made a grab for me. Big mistake.

"Shannaro!" I shouted excitedly as I punched the guy when my chakra enhanced fist. The table behind him shattered upon impact. I doubted the guy would be interrupting us any further, and perhaps the others would get the hint and back off, but just in case…

"Cha! Stay out of my conversation!" I shouted angrily. It was then I realized my temper had gotten the best of me. I looked back at Luke who was staring dumbfounded at the mess I had made. "Whoops!" I said rather sheepishly. "Looks like I made a bit of a mess! I hope you don't mind."

The bartender looked like he wanted to be the last person to get on my bad side and shook his head in agreement. A wise decision on his part. "Luke," I said trying to get his attention. It worked as he turned back to me with the most horrified expression I've ever seen. "Are you hurt?"

"Uh… no… but… uh… what are you?" he asked, looking at me as though I wasn't human, and perhaps to him I wasn't. Probably wasn't everyday you saw a five-foot, two-inch 17 year old girl, punch a man hard enough that there was a small crater from the impact he made with the ground. I honestly couldn't blame the guy.

"A friend, it seems," said the old man who had been watching us the whole time. "Thank you," he said to me. "Why don't you stick with us for awhile? You could probably use some company."

I grinned, noting that he was one of the few who could tell that I was as comfortable in here as Luke was, which was to say not at all. "I appreciate the company."

The older man nodded his head and turned his attention back to his conversation partner. "Who's your friend?" I asked Luke.

"Oh… uh… that's Ben. Ben Kenobi," replied Luke. I got a little closer and put a comforting hand on his knee.

"It's okay," I whispered. "I saw those guys targeting you. I just wanted to protect you from them."

That seemed to help him calm down a little, and I felt him relax under my touch slightly. "Okay," he replied before grinning. "Thanks."

An image of another grinning face flourished instantly in my mind. A grin that I would cherish forever. Luke might have the same color eyes and hair as _him_, I thought to myself, but that's all they have in common.

Well, perhaps that wasn't entirely true. There was something about Luke other then those particular features that seemed to cry out to me, begging me to compare him to Naruto. He was shorter then most of the other creatures in here, human or other wise, but still taller then me, which wasn't much of a feat considering, but still. (Yeah! I'm short! You gotta problem with that?! Cha!)

"So, like I was saying before I was so rudely interrupted," I said rather loudly. Some at the bar ducked their heads guiltily. "What brings you all the way out here?"

Luke seemed unsure on how to answer me. I could easily deduce that they were being cautious about who they trusted. I smiled as sweetly as I could. "You're friend, Ben, seems to trust me," I said softly, "but you don't have to tell me the whole truth."

Luke grew a little confident from my admission. "We're just trying to find a way off this planet."

"Ah. Where to?" I asked. Off this planet? You mean you could easily fly from one planet to the next as easily as you could walk to your next door neighbors house and ask for a cup of sugar? I quietly thanked my training as a shinobi. Those questions would have been out of my mouth faster then Sasuke could activate his sharingan if I hadn't been taught to do otherwise.

"Um…"

"Luke," said Ben, interrupting us. Just in time from the look on Luke's face. "This is Chewbacca. He's the first mate on a ship that may suit our needs. He'll take us to her captain-owner now."

For a moment, I thought I was going to get left behind for my trouble protecting Luke, but Ben nudged not just Luke, but myself as well to follow Chewbacca. Surprised (or perhaps stunned was a better term), I followed them obediently over to a table in the corner where a young man (younger then Ben, older then Luke and myself) was waiting for us. He displayed the openness of the utterly confident, or the insanely reckless. I frowned at the feminine creature wiggling in his lap. While such behavior was openly accepted by everyone else at this cesspool they called a cantina, that didn't mean I had to approve of such perverted behavior myself. As we approached him, the man whispered something into the female's ear that, as she walked away, left her grinning like cheshire cat, with the sharp teeth and everything. I couldn't help but stare as I watched her go.

Chewbacca rumbled something at the man, and he nodded in response.

"I saw that little stunt you pulled over there, little girl," he said. Already I wanted to knock this guys face off his head. Little girl? Yes! I'm a late bloomer! Would everyone quit rubbing it in?!

He smirked at the sour look on my face. "I don't think ten Imperial soldiers could have done what you did there. That man was wanted in twelve different systems." My face softened slightly at the compliment. "I'm Han Solo, captain of the _Millennium Falcon_. Chewie, here, tells me you're looking for passage to the Alderaan system?"

"That's right, son. If it's a fast ship." Ben replied. I couldn't help but smile at the look on Solo's face at the word 'son.'

_I may be a little girl to you, but to Kenobi here, you're no more then a mere child,_ my inner self crowed happily, if somewhat lamely.

"Fast ship? You mean you've never heard of the _Millennium Falcon_?" asked Solo.

Kenobi was amused. "Should I?"

"It's the ship that made the Kessel run in less than twelve parsecs," said Solo indignantly. "I've outrun Imperial starships and Corellian cruisers. I think she's fast enough for you, old man." His outrage subsided. "What's the cargo?"

"Five passengers." Luke and I looked at Ben with some surprise. When did I get dragged into this mess? "Myself, the boy and the girl, two 'droids, and no questions asked."

"No questions," said Han, studying his mug intently before looking back at Ben. "Is it local trouble?"

"Let's just say we want to avoid any Imperial entanglements," replied Kenobi easily.

"Well, that's the real trick, isn't it?" said Han. "And it'll cost you something extra. All in all about ten thousand in advance."

"Ten thousand?!" Luke gaped. "We could almost buy our own ship for that."

I put my hand on Luke's shoulder in an attempt to calm him down, and it seemed to work.

"We haven't that much with us," Kenobi explained. "But we'll pay two thousand now, plus fifteen when we reach Alderaan."

"Fifteen?" said Solo. "You can really get your hands on that kind of money?"

"I promise it-from the government of Alderaan itself. At worst, you'll have made an honest fee of two thousand."

Solo didn't seem to hear that last bit. "Seventeen thousand… All right, I'll chance it. You've got yourselves a ship. As for avoiding Imperial entanglements, you'd better twist outta here or even the _Millennium Falcon _won't be any help to you." He nodded towards the entrance before adding: "Docking bay ninety-four, first thing in the morning."

Faster than Kakashi and his Chidori, all five of us were gone.

* * *

**Okay, in case you haven't guessed already, Sakura is from an Alternate Naruto Universe. My idea originally was for her to actually kill Sasuke, but I decided it would be a little more poetic for him to kill himself. Do I hate him? Maybe... . **

**And yes, I know I'm cheating, giving her the ability to do the Shadow Clone Jutsu like Naruto. This'll probably be the one of the few times she uses it. I promise, that's the only "new" ability I've given her! It's not like she can use all the time like Naruto can! DX **

**Tell me what you think.**


	2. Alderaan

_There's no telling if the results of her experiment were intended or not. Perhaps the dark energies of this dimension were already twisted, and this was her attempt at fixing it. There's always the chance that she was just throwing in what she could and hoped it worked._

___Considering what happened after I arrived, I'm fairly certain it was the latter._

_After she had completed the first phase of transferring the unassuming mortal being (aka me), the reaction of the dark energies that had been polluting that particular dimension for several standard decades was rather... Well, I can't say if it was expected or not because I'm not the magical super-computer that started this whole thing in the first place, but I can say that the corruption got worse, as though it was trying to fight off her influence._

_No one within the dimension could feel it, however, not even I could, really. Not that I was ever really sensitive to this sort of thing anyway. In fact, it wouldn't be until much later that I would learn of this super-computer, and its influence over my life._

_It's really quite sad, now that I think about it._

* * *

It wasn't until we were at Ben and Luke's speeder—as I had heard it called earlier—that I realized that Luke had taken my hand. Part of the reason that I didn't realize at first was because I was still baffled over why I was being dragged along to a place called Alderaan. I looked up just as he let go, his face red from embarrassment. Dismissing it as nothing, I peered over at Ben, trying to figure out why he wanted me to tag along with them. Did he know that I wasn't from… whatever this place was?

The small smile he gave me as he began loading one of the droids onto the speeder told me he had an idea. However, I was quickly distracted by the speeder and it's strange design.

_It looks like a boat floating on air instead of water, _my inner self observed. _An oversimplification, perhaps, but that's what it looks like._

Luke noticed my fascination with his speeder. "You've never seen a speeder before?" he asked.

I looked over at him and felt my cheeks heat up. He was quite perceptive, and it bothered me a little. "No, I haven't," I answered honestly.

The look he gave me was vaguely reminiscent to the one he gave me after I pounded that alien into the dirt back in the cantina. Before he could ask me how was that possible, Ben interrupted. "We can discuss the details of where you came from after we are safely on board the _Millennium Falcon _and in hyperspace."

"Why are you dragging me along, anyway?" I asked.

"You might call it instinct, but I have a feeling you are needed with us," Ben replied cryptically. "Now, Luke, we might have to sell your speeder in order to come up with the two thousand we promised Solo."

Luke looked at the speeder, his eyes filled with a grief I recognized. "It's all right. I don't think I'll need it again."

* * *

"There's docking bay ninety-four," Luke said as we joined him at the… spaceport. Chances of me getting used to all these new terms and such were very slim. It was one thing to grow up in such a world, and a whole other to come crashing into it at random.

"There's Chewie. He seems excited about something." Luke noted as the hairy creature waved at us above the crowd, jabbering loudly at us.

"Let's go," said Ben.

As the five of us, three humans and two 'droids, headed towards the docking bay, I took a cautious look behind us. For a moment, I thought I had spotted something rather suspicious, but the moment was fleeting. Turning back, I followed the others into the dock where the _Millennium Falcon_ was waiting for us.

"What a piece of junk," muttered Luke. While he looked at it in disbelief that it could even lift off the ground, I was looking at it like it was the coolest thing since walking on water (and despite the fact that I could do that easily now, it was still pretty dang cool).

"She may not look like much," said Han as he came out from underneath the ship, "but she's got it where it counts. I've added a few modifications myself. She'll get you to Alderaan. We seemed to be a bit rushed so if you'll just step onboard, we can get ourselves underway."

Luke looked unconvinced, but he didn't argue as he followed Ben and Chewbacca up the ramp inside, followed closely by the two droids, Artoo Deetoo and See Threepio (as I found out). I lagged a little as I studied the ship, amazed at the technology before me. I always prided myself on my intelligence. I wasn't a member of the Nara clan, but I wasn't a blithering idiot either. However, there was no way I would ever be able to learn to fly something as complex as this. Han seemed to notice my look of amazement. "You like what you see?"

I was about to answer him honestly until I saw the smug look on his face. I opened my mouth to make an angry retort when something metallic flashed out of the corner of my eye. I ducked out of the way just as a bolt of light shot past my head. Han pulled out a gun and began shooting at the soldiers coming on to the dock.

"Get in here!" Han shouted at me. As I ran up the ramp, I took out a kunai with a tag attached to the handle. With a careful but precise throw, I lodged the kunai into the ceiling above them. They glanced at it in confusion just as the tag exploded.

Han watched in shock for a moment as the roof of the platform began to collapse on itself. I grabbed his arm as I ran passed him, trying to drag him inside. He gave me an odd look before stumbling inside the ship with me.

"Chewie get us out of here!" he shouted as he closed the door behind us and ran for the cockpit.

"Sakura, over here," said Luke motioning for me to sit beside him. Both he and Ben Kenobi were strapping themselves in their seats, and I followed suit. The lift off was nerve wracking, but once we were out in space, things seemed to calm down for a moment.

_For a moment, being the key word._

Once we were out of the atmosphere, Luke, Ben and I left our seats and headed for the cockpit. I was more or less curious about what it was like to fly such a ship, and once I entered the cockpit, my curiosity was more than satisfied. The gadgets and switches and buttons all went unnoticed as I stared out at the black space in the widow.

I remembered a few nights during my time as a part of team seven when I couldn't sleep because the ground was too hard or wet, and I would stare at the night sky and watch the stars as they danced in the night sky without ever actually moving. Clouds would roll by lazy, casting eerie shadows as the passed. The pale moon turning everything different shades of blue, and Naruto's snores drowned out the rest of the forest.

Nothing, not even those vaguely happy memories, could compare to what I felt staring out that window. It made me feel small, insignificant…

…_alone._

"Sakura? You all right?" asked Luke shaking me out of my reverie.

"Huh? Oh yeah, I'm fine," I lied.

I watched with tears in my eyes as the stars became streaks of light, and jumped into what looked to me as some sort of wormhole. I thought of my parents and wondered vaguely if they were even alive as I had not seen them since before the start of the war. My friends, my team, my teachers, they were all gone, so there was no reason for me to want to go back, but I still wished I could. However, as I stood in the cockpit shedding what I swore right then and there would be the last of my tears, the village of Konoha would forever be just a memory, a dream that I would one day wake up and wonder if it had ever been real.

* * *

A short while later, Luke was standing in the middle of the main hold of the ship, an unusual sword in his hand and a strange device hovering around him. Ben was instructing Luke on how to use the sword properly. The odd device hummed a monotone tune as Luke waved it around as the the small metal ball darted back and forth around him.

I looked over at Ben who was watching Luke carefully. I was still a little confused as to why he had practically forced me to come along, but was unsure on how to approach the subject. I looked over at Artoo and Chewbacca as they were playing some sort of game with moving images. I tried not to look too amazed as one creature on the platform stepped forward to remove another alien from the game. It made me think of Shikamaru and the game he and his father were always playing, Shogi.

Chewbacca roared at the little bot in anger, and Artoo could only beep in response before Threepio interjected in his defense. "He made a fair move. Screaming about it won't help you."

A sudden yelp of surprise pulled me away from the altercation between the 'droids and the Wookiee. Luke was clutching at his side as the strange device he was fighting off floated innocently around him.

"Remember," said Kenobi, "the Force is omnipresent. It envelops you as it radiates from you. A Jedi warrior can actually feel the force as a physical thing."

"The Force?"

Ben turned to me with a small smile. "Ah yes," he said. "I nearly forgot, you don't know much about things here do you?" I looked at him with what I hoped was mild surprise. "Yes, I know you're not exactly from Tatooine, your clothes and the manner of your speech gave you away."

Luke deactivated his lightsaber, curious as to what Ben meant. "Not from Tatooine?"

"I thought it was even more curious," continued Ben, "when you said you had never seen a speeder before, and yet you should have come to Tatooine by way of a ship. Judging from your reaction to seeing all this, perhaps you are not from this galaxy at all. So tell us, where are you from?"

"You mean you brought her along, and you don't even know who she is?" asked Han having overheard Ben's admission.

"I… I am from a village called Konohagakure," I tried to explain. "I've never heard of Tatooine or Alderaan. Honestly, I didn't even know space travel was possible."

Han looked incredulous, but Luke seemed more or less fascinanated. "How did you get to Tatooine?" he asked rather enthused.

"I don't know," I replied frankly. I took a deep, shaky breath and looked back at Ben. "So, what's this Force you were talking about?"

"As I told Luke, it's an energy field created by all living things. It surrounds us and penetrates us; it binds the galaxy together," Ben explained.

"An energy field?"

"That and more," said Ben mysteriously. "No one, not even the Jedi scientists, were able to truly define the Force. Possibly no one ever will. Sometimes there is as much magic as there is science in the explanations of the Force."

"Can anyone use the Force?" I asked.

"No," replied Ben. "Only those who can sense it can tap into its power."

I contemplated this for a moment before I decided it would be safe to share a little information about where I came from. "In my world, we don't have the force. We rely on something called chakra, an energy within ourselves to use," I said. "It's a mixture of physical and spiritual energy, and anyone can be taught to harness it."

"Indeed," said Ben rather thoughtfully. "Perhaps the Force works differently in your world. It would explain the strangeness I sense around you. Almost as though your energy has been altered in some way."

Han snorted in smug disbelief.

"Hocus-pocus religions and archaic weapons are no substitute for a good blaster at your side," he said. "It's all just parlor tricks and nonsense."

"I don't know about the Force," I admitted. "But chakra is what I used to pound that guy back at the cantina." I looked pointedly at Han. "It's also what I used to make that explosion you saw back there at the spaceport."

"Bombs are easy to acquire," he said. "As are strength enhancers, so, again, parlor tricks and nonsense."

"If you don't believe in the Force, then how did I get here?" I asked. "I'm pretty sure I didn't get here through my own volition."

"And how do I know you're not just making that up?" he shot back. I opened my mouth to reply in anger, but he stopped me. "Look, I've been on one end of the galaxy to the other, and I've seen a lot of strange things, yourself included in that category." I resisted the temptation to pummel him into the floor. "Too many to believe there couldn't be something like this 'Force.' Too many to think that there could be some such controlling one's actions. _I_ determine my destiny—not some half-mystical energy field."

Ben smiled and turned back to Luke. "Now, Luke, try again. You must divorce your actions from-" He suddenly stopped, his eyes widening in shock and horror.

Luke and I rushed to his side, but Ben dismissed our worry. "I'm fine," he said, albeit shakily. "I just... I felt a great disturbance in the force, as if millions of voices cried out in terror and were suddenly silenced. I fear something terrible has happened."

I sat beside him as he sent Luke off to continue the exercise. "I'm a medic if you need anything," I said quietly.

"Thanks," he replied, but he did not smile. "But I'm afraid there's nothing wrong with me medically speaking."

"Okay," I conceded before turning away.

Another yelp from Luke distracted us. He was shaking his leg from what I assumed was a numbing effect the thing's beam had. Ben stood up and reached behind a locker to pull out a helmet.

"This time Luke," said Ben as he put the helmet on the young man's head. "Let go of your conscious self, and act on instinct."

"With the blast shield down, I can't even see," said Luke as Ben back away. "How am I supposed to fight?"

"With the Force," said Ben. "Stretch out with your feelings."

Suddenly, Luke stopped, wavering slightly. The seeker drifted behind him before changing directions again and dove to strike. Simultaneously, the lightsaber jerked around, as accurate as it was awkward in its motion, to deflect the bolt.

"You see? You can do it," said Ben.

"I call it luck," remarked Solo.

"In my experience there's no such thing as luck," replied Kenobi.

"Look, good against the mechanic is one thing, good against the living, that's something else."

The words were barely out of Han's mouth when a small light began flashing from across the hold. Chewbacca noticed it and called out to Han.

"Looks like we're coming up on Alderaan," he said standing up and heading for the cockpit. Having been completely preoccupied by the viewport the last time, I had missed my opportunity to study them when we were in space. This time I paid closer attention to what they were doing, hoping to learn something valuable. Each of them sat in their respective chairs. Their focus was exclusively on the switches and levers of the ship. Unable to make a valuable contribution, I just watched them work.

"Ready to go sublight… ready… cut us in, Chewie," said Han.

Chewbacca flipped a switch just as Han pulled on a large lever. Abrubtly the long streaks of Doppler-distorted starlight slowed to hyphen shapes, then finally to familiar bolts of fire. Gigantic chunks of stone assaulted the ship as soon as we left hyperspace, barely deflected by the ship's shields. The _Falcon _shuddered violently from the strain.

"What the—?" muttered Solo. Chewbacca said nothing as both he and Solo were busy trying to keep the ship in one piece.

"What happened?" I asked.

"We're back in normal space," said Solo, "but we've come out in the worst astroid storm I've ever seen. It's not on any of our charts." He looked over at some instruments I couldn't recognize. "According to the galactic atlas, our position is correct. Only one thing is missing: Alderaan."

Luke and Ben came in as well. Luke was struggling to keep his balance. "What's going on?"

"Alderaan is gone," I explained so Han wouldn't have to repeat himself.

"Gone? That's crazy!"

"I won't argue with you," Han replied grimly, "but look for yourself." He motioned to the window. "I've triple checked the coordinates. There's nothing wrong with the navicomputer. It's been totally blown away."

I blinked, barely comprehending what he was saying. I had seen plenty of destruction in my own world, and given the current level of technology before me, it shouldn't have been such a surprise. I had seen some of the worst of humanity, but I never would have thought that anyone would be evil enough destroy an entire planet.

"How?!" cried Luke.

"The Empire," said Ben Kenobi.

Just as Han tried to deny Ben's claim, alarms began humming loudly as a synchronous light flashed across the control console. Solo bent to get a closer look.

"Another ship," he announced. "Can't judge what type yet."

"A survivor, maybe—someone who might know what happened," Luke ventured.

Ben's next words, however, shattered all hope. "It's an Imperial fighter."

Chewbacca gave an angry bark just as a huge flower of destruction blossomed outside, battering the freighter fiercely. A tiny, double-winged ball raced passed the cockpit port.

"It followed us!" shouted Luke.

"No," said Ben. "It's a short range fighter."

"But there are no Imperial bases near here," said Han.

"It sure is leaving in a big hury, if they identify us, we're in big trouble," said Luke.

"Not if I can help it, Chewie, jam it's transmission," ordered Han.

"It'd be best to let it go; it's too far out of range," said Ben.

"Not for long."

The next few moments were spent in complete silence as we followed the small fighter. All eyes were on the small tracking screen and the viewport. The small Imperial fighter tried at first to lose us by performing complex maneuvers and dodges, but the _Falcon_ hung tight on its tail and began closing the distance between.

Peering ahead, I noticed one of the stars was getting steadily brighter. I nudged Luke who was standing next to me. I watched him frown as we got steadily closer. I knew it wasn't an actual star as how Han would have noticed if we were heading for a blazing ball of fire.

"A fighter that size couldn't have gotten this deep into space on its own."

"What's that thing he's heading for? A moon?" I interjected.

"There must be a base there," Han admitted. "According to my charts, though, Alderaan had no moons."

As we got closer, I could see the formations of what should have been mountains, valleys, and canyons, but they didn't look natural to me. The were oddly regular, the mountains too vertical, and the canyons impossibly straight.

"That's no moon," said Ben softly. "That's a space station."

"It's too big to be space station," argued Solo.

I felt chills running up and down my spine the closer we got. Something was waiting for me on that ship. I wanted to believe it was the reason for my coming to this place, this galaxy, at all, but I had a distinct feeling that I wouldn't like it. I grabbed Luke's hand in my terror, and he squeezed it in return.

"I've got a bad feeling about this," said Luke.

"Turn this ship around!" The normally calm Kenobi shouted, much to my surprise. "Get us out of here!"

"I think you might be right," agreed Han. "Full reverse, Chewie."

Chewbacca started adjusting controls, but the freighter only slowed its advance. Chewie growled something to Han. "Lock in the auxiliary power," Solo replied.

The freighter did not deviate from its present course, much to my confusion.

"Why are we still moving towards it?" I asked.

"We're caught in a tractor beam," Han answered. "It's dragging us in."

"Is there nothing you can do?"

"Nope, I'm already at full power," said Han. "I'm shutting her down or we'll melt the engines. They're not going to get me without a fight."

Gathering as much bravado as I could, I let go of Luke's hand and swallowed. Now was not the time to be afraid. "Damn straight!" I shouted eagerly.

"You can't win, but there are alternatives to fighting."

* * *

I did everything I could to keep my breathing steady as I sat in the cramped compartment under the floor with Han and Luke. We listened carefully to the footsteps of the troopers and the orders given by their superiors. Luke was crouched over on his feet, his head impossibly close to the top of the compartment, listening to the footsteps of the soldiers. Someone walked right over us, and I covered my mouth as a gasp nearly escaped my mouth. I must have made a noise cause Han suddenly pulled me into his embrace protectively.

I shouldn't have been as terrified as I was, as I had been in worse situations then this, but something about this station had me utterly petrified. Maybe it was the fact that this station was responsible for the destruction of an entire planet and the billions of people on it.

_Calm down, Sakura, _my inner self hummed. _You'll be okay._

Finally, the last of the troopers foot steps faded away, and Luke and Han peered out to see if the coast was clear. "Lucky you built these compartments," Luke commented as he lifted himself out. He offered me his hand, but I jumped out easily enough without his help, to his surprise. Don't know why, he saw me pummel an alien twice my size, after all.

"Yeah, but I never thought I'd be smuggling myself in them," said Han in response to Luke's comment. "This is crazy," he said to Ben as he, Chewbacca, and the droids climbed out of the other compartment, "even if I could take off and get past the closed hatch, I'd never get past the tractor beam."

"Leave that to me," replied Ben.

"Oh, damn fool, I knew you were going to say that," moaned Han.

"Who's more foolish? The fool or the one who follows him?" asked Ben.

I carefully hunkered down by the ramp just out of sight. I ignored the others as I listened to the troops just outside. I focused my chakra to my ears so I could hear them better. It was part of my enhanced strength technique. If I concentrated enough chakra to a certain sense, whether it was my sight, hearing, or smell, I could improve it marginally. At the base, there were two soldiers guarding the entrance. I could hear two more sets of footsteps joining them.

"The ship's all yours," one of the troopers told them. "If the scanners pick up anything, report it immediately."

The two technicians lugged their equipment up the ramp, and I did my best to sink further into the shadows. Just after they passed me, I sprang up and knocked them both out. Han and Luke, who had also been hiding, jumped out, only to find they weren't entirely needed.

I snuck back into the shadows as Luke stepped forward to call out to the guards down below. "Hey down there! Could you give us a hand with this?!"

When the two guards came up, muttering about the inefficiency of technicians, they were effectively surprised and knocked unconscious by yours truly. Luke and Han quickly stripped them of their armor before putting it on themselves.

"They're going to notice that the guards are missing," said Luke just before he put on his helmet.

Han stepped down the ramp before coming back up. He and Ben came up with a plan to get up into the command office overlooking the freighter. It would be a good vantage point while Ben took out the reactor for the tractor beam. I followed Han and Chewbacca to the command office.

The door opened when it became obvious that something was wrong with the two guards that had been stationed at the _Falcon's _entrance. However, to the man's astonishment, we were already at the door. Chewie punched the first guy before Han shot the other.

"You know, for a smuggler, you sure don't know how to be subtle, do you?" I said ignoring the bodies as I stepped over them.

"What's that supposed to mean?" asked Han. Luke came up behind the droids, nervously checking to see if anyone had been alerted to our presence.

"Between his howling and your blasting, it's a wonder the whole station doesn't know we're here," he answered for me.

"Bring 'em on," said Han, unreasonably enthused by our success so far. "I prefer a straight fight to all this sneaking around."

"All this sneaking around is what's keeping us alive," I commented. "I'm kind of used to this sort of thing."

"What did you do in your world?" asked Han.

"I'm a shinobi," I answered while peering out the window. "We do all sorts of jobs for a price. Our mission can be anything from manual labor to assassinations. I was a Medial-nin. I specialize in medical treatment and the use of medical oriented techniques. My teacher was considered the greatest medic in the world."

"That's good to know if I ever need a medic," Han remarked snidely.

"The same techniques I know to heal can be used to kill, you know," I replied as I began to crack my knuckles ominously. Han seemed to remember what I did back on Tatooine at the cantina and fell silent.

Artoo suddenly began to beep and whistle excitedly as he sat at the control panel. Kenobi stepped forward, motioning at the droid. "Plug him in," he said. "He should be able to extract information regarding the location of the tractor-beam power unit."

Artoo extended an arm and plugged into a computer socket he had found. Instantly, a galaxy of lights came to life on the panel in front of him, the machinery hummed it's single note as worked at high speeds. There was a few moments before he beeped at the rest of us.

"He's found it," announced Threepio. "The tractor beam is coupled to the main reactors at seven locations. Most of the pertinent data is restricted, but he'll try to pull the critical information through to the monitor."

I stared at the screen as it lit up with data that I could not and never hope to understand. I just hoped Ben knew what he needed to do. "I'll need you all to stay here," he said after a moment. "I don't think you all can help me. I must go alone."

"That suits me fine," said Solo readily. "I've already done more then I bargained for on this trip."

I gave him a good smack on the shoulder to shut him up. He glared at me but decided it was unwise to test my temper. Luke was not so easily deterred.

"I want to come with you," he said to Ben.

"Don't be impatient, Luke. This requires skills you've not yet mastered. Stay and watch over the 'droids. They must not fall into Imperial hands, or other worlds will suffer the same fate as Alderaan's." To my surprise, Kenobi turned to me. "Watch out for him, Sakura. He's as headstrong as his father.

"Remember, Luke, the force will be with you. Always." With that said, he left.

As soon as he was gone, Chewbacca growled and Solo nodded in agreement. "You said it Chewie. Where did you dig up that old fossil?"

"Ben Kenobi—_General _Kenobi—is great man," Luke protested loftily.

"Great at getting us into trouble," said Han.

"I have a feeling you would have found it yourself anyway," I said with a smile.

Han ignored me. "'General' my afterburners. He's not going to get us out of here."

"You've got any better ideas?" Luke shot back challengingly.

A hysterical whistling and hooting came from the computer console. As I stepped over to see what was going on (not that I knew anything about this technology), Artoo was all but hopping on his three little legs.

"What is it?" I asked looking at Threepio. He looked about as confused as a robot could look.

"I'm afraid I'm not sure either," he said. "He says, 'I found her' and keeps repeating 'she's here.'"

"Who?" asked Luke.

"Princess Leia," replied Threepio. I looked at Luke questioningly, but he didn't seem to notice me.

"The princess? She's here?"

"Who's Princess Leia?" I asked.

"Where? Where is she?" demanded Luke breathlessly, ignoring me completely.

Attracted by the commotion, Han joined us over by Artoo. "Princess? What's going on here?"

"No questions asked, remember?" I said to him.

Artoo whistled on while Threepio translated. "Level five, detention block AA-23. I'm afraid she's scheduled to be terminated."

"Terminated? We gotta help her!" shouted Luke.

"Luke!" I finally had his attention. "Who's Princess Leia? What's going on?"

"She's the one in the message," he explained quickly as though I knew what he was talking about. "We got to help her!"

"Now wait just a minute," said Han, "let's not get any funny ideas. The old man said to wait right here."

"But he didn't know she was here!" cried Luke.

"Luke, you've got to calm down," I said. "If we're going to get her out of there, we'll need to have our heads clear. Now," I looked over the dead men with us, "I have an idea."

"Are you both insane?!" shouted Han. "I'm not going into any Imperial detention blocks."

"If we don't do something, they'll execute her," argued Luke. "Look, a minute ago you didn't want to sit and wait to be captured. Now all you want to do is stay?"

"Marching into the detention cell is is not what I had in mind!" replied Han.

"Don't pay him any mind Luke," I said. "He's just afraid." They both looked at me as I was putting on the belt of the man Han had shot with his weapon.

"You callin' me a coward?" asked Han.

"That's one word for it," I replied. "Now stand back."

Han glared at me, but did as I instructed as I used a jutsu I learned way back before I became a part of Team Seven. I swallowed back sorrow at the memories that filled my mind at the thought.

"Transform," I whispered as smoke burst into the room. The cloud faded, and by the looks on the faces of my comrades, I looked exactly like the man Han had shot and killed.

"How do I look?" I asked, by voice deep and masculine. They continued to stare at me completely dumbfounded. I turned to Chewbacca who was also looking at me like… well, like I had changed into a man.

"Chewbacca," I said. "Can you pretend to be a prisoner for awhile?"

Han seemed to snap out of it first. "You're not seriously going to just march into the detention block like that, are you?"

"Not by myself," I replied. "You two are going to help. I don't exactly know how to get to the detention block."

"Did you not hear me when I said I'm not doing this?"

"She's a Princess, isn't she? Even if her planet is gone, she's probably got a fortune to her name. I'm sure you'd be rewarded handsomely for your efforts," I reasoned. "A mission like this in my world would be worth several hundred thousand, at least."

I could almost see the money signs in Han's eyes. "All right," he said after a thought. "We'll give it a try, and I think I know what you have in mind." Luke put on his helmet as Han began putting the handcuffs on Chewie.

"Uh… Miss…" Threepio stuttered, trying to figure out what to call me since I was technically no longer "Sakura."

"Yes, See Threepio?"

"Begging your pardon for asking, but what should Artoo and I do if we're discovered here?"

"Lock the door," replied Luke.

"And hope they don't have blasters."

* * *

**I know what you're thinking… Did I fire seven shots or six?**

**Lol! Just kidding! If there's anyone wondering why the destruction of Alderaan is slightly delayed... or rather, why Obi-Wan's sensing it is delayed, it will be explained later. ;)**

**Reviews are love!**


	3. Death Star

_I don't think I have ever been more frustrated in my entire life._ As we headed further inside this huge space station appropriately called the "Death Star," traffic seemed to get much heavier, and the hallways didn't change one bit, which was one of the reasons for my frustration. To begin with, I wasn't entirely sure where I was going. Luke had given me an idea of which way we needed to go, but with every hallway looking exactly like the last, it was a wonder no one was walking up to _us_ and asking for directions.

_Perhaps this is supposed to be some form of torture. It would explain why there's a rebellion going on._ The other reason for my frustration and nerves was the fact that we could not get anywhere without at least someone throwing us a curious glance. Since there was nothing else to look at going down these dull halls other than the people wandering through as well, we got more then our fair share of curious looks what with Chewie being with us and all.

Eventually we reached a wide bank of elevators, much to my relief. As we stepped into one of them, there was a nervous second when a minor official raced up to get aboard. I gestured sharply to the next one over, and, without complaint, the officer shifted to the next elevator.

I studied the control panel for a moment before telling the computer where I wanted to go, my still masculine voice sounding as authoritative as I could make it. It didn't matter, though, as the computer was not programmed to differentiate the appropriateness of my tone.

"This isn't going to work," whispered Han.

"Why didn't you say so before?" Luke asked, sounding flustered and frightened.

"I _did_ say so before," replied Han.

"Both of you, shut up," I hissed.

I had hoped when we arrived at the security platform that it would be like the prisons in Konoha with steel bars for the cell doors. What I got instead—and it didn't surprise me too much—was some narrow ramps bordering a bottomless ventilation shaft. These walkways, several levels of them, ran parallel to smooth curving walls which held faceless detention cells.

_They just can't make this easy for me, can they?_ My inner self cried mournfully. One of the security guards, the one in charge of the others, I decided, approached us, frowning as he examined Chewbacca.

"Where are you taking this… thing?"

Just after we had left the safety of the command office, Luke and I had discussed what we should say if anyone were to stop us and ask where we are going and what we were doing.

"Prisoner transfer," I said, repeating what we had decided on, "from cell block TS-138."

"I wasn't notified," he replied turning to me. "I'll have to clear it."

I heard Han lean in close to Chewbacca and whispered something as he undid the cuffs the the Wookiee's arms. Almost as soon as the cuffs were loose, Chewie let out a terrible howl as he shoved me forward.

"Look out! It's loose!" shouted Han.

I rolled under the desk and pulled out the blaster on my belt. I had already seen Han handle his so I knew how to operate it. While Han and Luke turned their weapons on the cameras and things—cause they knew what to look for—I took out all the guards, including the guy I just spoke to.

My mind flashed to the bodies of my dead friends as I shot each guard. Somewhere in this galaxy were friends and families of these people who would never see these men again. I banished the thought from my mind and continued firing until there was no one left.

_Be strong, Sakura. Be strong and focus._

"We gotta find out what cell this princess of yours is in!" said Han after pulling off his helmet as he approached the console. "There must be a dozen levels and—Here it is. Cell 2187. Go on—We'll hold them here."

Luke disappeared down the narrow walkway looking for the right cell. I holstered my blaster and checked my stash of weapons. I still had six more kunai and fifteen shuriken, two of those kunai were poisoned, the scrolls of course, a few more tags, and some smoke bombs.

"Everything's under control here," said Solo into the pickup, sounding reasonably official. "Situation normal."

"What happened?"

"Uh, we had a slight weapons malfunction, but everything's fine here now. We're all fine here, now, thank you. How are you?"

"Really?" I asked looking at him. He gestured for me to keep quiet.

"We're sending a squad up."

"Uh, negative, negative, we have an energy leak up here. Give us a few moments to lock it down. Large leak—very dangerous."

"Who is this? What's your operating number?"

Instead of answering, Han took out his blaster and shot the console to silent scraps. "Boring conversation anyway. Luke! We're going to have company!"

Focusing my chakra to my feet, I scaled the wall and clung to the ceiling, waiting close to the door for the troopers to come marching in. Han stared at me, slightly dumbfounded.

"How are you—?" He didn't get to answer as the soldiers began to come in. I was surprised at how fast they had gotten here, but I didn't let it show as Chewie picked them off. Then they blew a hole in the wall. Thankfully, it didn't knock me down, and I quickly repositioned myself on the ceiling so that when the soldiers came in, I would be right on top of them. Chewie and Han made a run down the walkway, shooting at the incoming troopers. The troopers didn't see me above them. As soon as they were inside, I dropped down on top of them, fists blazing with chakra.

When the dust settled, there was shattered armor and unconscious or dead soldiers everywhere. They didn't even get a chance to call for reinforcements, but the blast from the explosion would draw more attention. I checked them to see who was alive and who was dead. It would be a few hours before those I had managed to knock unconscious would awaken, and by then, I hoped, we would be long gone.

"Hey! The coast is clear! Let's go!" I shouted. The others came down the hall, thunderstruck looks on their faces once they noticed the troopers on the floor. I looked at the girl who I assumed was the princess Luke spoke of earlier. "You must be the Princess we're here to rescue."

"Yes…" she said blinking at me, probably to make sure I was real. "I'm Leia Organa. You are?"

"Sakura Haruno, but you can call me Sakura," I replied. "Let's go before more troopers show up."

* * *

We ended up having to take the long way back. I had been correct in my assumptions in that the explosion that had occurred had attracted a lot of unwanted attention. I created a few clones—not shadow clones as I was getting pretty low on chakra and needed to conserve what I could—to distract and confuse, much to my comrades' amazement. My clones took off in all different directions while we headed back towards the ship.

After about twenty seconds into our trip back towards the ship, Leia and Han started fighting with one another, over who was in charge of this operation. Leia assumed command because she was royalty and, apparently, thought she knew more about how to get us out of here than the rest of us. I tried not to roll my eyes. Of course, Han was worse. He claimed he was in charge because he didn't take orders from anyone other than himself. I let them have at it for about two minutes before I finally had enough.

"Okay, first of all, no one is 'in charge,'" I hissed angrily at them. "Second, it was _my plan_, your highness, _my efforts_ that got you out of that cell and saved your life from termination. Let me finish," I said as Leia tried to interrupt me. "Third, this is a team effort, all right? We have to work together to get out of here, so follow my lead."

Han was speechless, and Leia looked slightly ashamed of herself. "Thank you," she said looking at each of us, "to all of you, for coming to rescue me."

"Now wait just one minute," cried Han, finally able to use his vocal cords. I intended to ignore him as I moved on down the hallway. "Look, sweetness, I take orders from only one person—me!"

"It's a wonder you're still alive," Leia shot back smoothly. I chuckled at that. "Would someone get this walking carpet out of my way?!"

Han looked back at Luke. "No reward is worth having to deal with _two_ of them."

Poor Luke could only shrug in response.

It took a little longer then I'd hoped, but we managed to find our way to a window overlooking the freighter. We were a good ways up, and it looked like they had found the two technicians and guards we had knocked out. Luke pulled out the comlink.

"See Threepio… do you copy?" he asked nervously.

There was a threatening pause before, "I read you, sir. We had to abandon the region around the office."

"Are you both safe?"

"For the moment, we're in the main hangar across from the ship."

"I can't see you across the bay," said Luke. "We must be right above you. Stand by. We'll join you as soon as we can."

"Wonder if that old man was able to knock out the tractor beam," Han muttered.

"It'll be a short flight if he didn't," I noted.

"You came here in that thing?" said Leia looking at Han in disbelief. "You're braver then I thought."

Han gave her a dirty look. Probably because he wasn't sure how to react to being insulted and complimented at once. I tried not to snicker as we headed back down the hallway. However, as soon as we rounded the corner, we were confronted by a dozen troopers. Han, unfortunately, was the first to react. He charged at them screaming and howling in some language I didn't recognize.

I guess the troopers thought he knew what he was doing—or didn't want to chance going up against a mad man without back up which I could understand—because they began to back up._ A mistake on their part._ Some shots from Han's blaster quickly had them breaking ranks and composure as they fled down the hall. Before I could stop him, Han chased after them, with Chewie following close behind.

"Get to the ship!" he called back to us. "I'll take care of these!"

"Are you out of your mind?" Luke shouted after him. "Where do you think you're going?"

Han had already rounded the bend further down the corridor and didn't hear. Not that it would have made a darn bit of difference.

"So much for teamwork," I said. "We can only hope he doesn't get himself killed."

"He's braver than I gave him credit for," Leia admitted reluctantly.

"That's not bravery," I said, thinking of another person I knew who was that unpredictable and reckless. His grinning face caused tears to rise, but I held them back with my frustration. Alarms started to go off, meaning that the Death Star was now alerted to our presence. "That's stupidity."

We didn't get far before we ran into some more trouble. Troopers were heading back towards where Han and Chewie had run off. We could only hide so well—and that wasn't very good to begin with—before we were discovered.

As we ducked down one hall to avoid colliding with a large group of troopers, two guards appeared at the far end of the same hallway, paused, and pointed directly at us. We ran back the way we came, only to get blocked off by a larger group of troopers. Luke pulled out his pistol and fired off a couple shots while I pulled out my smoke bombs and threw them on the ground. The smoke allowed me enough time to create several more clones to distract them while I pulled Luke and Leia down a subhallway.

A thick hatchway appeared ahead. The lighting grew dimmer beyond which gave us some hope of throwing off our pursuers. However, when we arrived, the floor vanished, causing us to stop just outside of the door. Leia quickly shut the door before realizing there was no lock. Luke shot the panel with his blaster.

"That ought to hold them for a little while," said Luke.

"We've got to get across," said Leia. "Find the controls that extend the bridge."

"Oh… I think I just blasted it," said Luke remorsefully. With a giant leap, surprising both Luke and Leia, I cleared the space just before some soldiers above on another platform began firing at them. Luke tried to return fire, but they had little cover and no clear shot.

Thankfully, as I ran up the wall, the troopers didn't see me until I was right on top of them, and then it was too late. I kicked one of them off the platform, and the other I rendered unconscious with a blow to the head. I checked the other to see if he was still breathing. Confirming that the guy was still alive, I looked down at Luke and Leia, both of whom were staring strangely at me.

_Man, you would think with all Luke has seen me do so far, he wouldn't be surprised anymore._

"Luke!" I shouted down to him. "Do you have any cable on that belt?" I prayed silently to the gods of metal wire that he had, at least, something we could use, and to my relief, he did. He hastily tied to one end a small but heavy power unit from his belt. Holding on to one end, he tossed the power unit up to me with the cable still attached. I ran up the wall a little ways to an outcropping of pipes and tied the cord to them.

"Swing across!" I shouted. Once they had done so, I pulled out a kunai to cut the cord and raced back towards the entry Luke and Leia had swung themselves over to. No longer surprised by my abilities, Luke and Leia ran just ahead of me.

* * *

"What kept you?" Han asked us when we finally found our way to the main hangar.

"We ran into some old friends," said Leia, breathlessly.

"Is the ship okay?" asked Luke.

"Seems okay," was Solo's analysis. "Doesn't look like they've moved anything or disturbed her engines. The problem is going to be getting to it."

"Look!" cried Leia pointing across the way. Illuminated by the flare of contacting energy fields, Ben Kenobi and some… thing I didn't recognize were backing toward the bay. The fight attracted the attention of others besides Leia. Every single one of the guards moved in for a better view of the Olympian conflict.

"Now's our chance," said Han moving forward.

I began to follow when I realized that the seven guards were about to aide the black humanoid in its fight with Ben. I clenched my fists and ran towards them.

"Sakura!"

The seven guards turned to me just as I leaped into their ranks. One by one, I took out each of the troopers, braking bones and cracking armor, before turning to Ben, hoping to see him win this fight. My hopes were shattered as I watched the saber of his opponent cut Ben in half.

I'm not sure if it was me or Luke who cried out in horror. It didn't matter as I raced to see Ben's broken body, aiming to see if I could do anything to save him. To my surprise and alarm, his body had vanished entirely. His cloak and sword were all that remained.

Furious that another one of my friends had fallen while I watched, utterly helpless, I picked up Ben's sword and pressed the button on the side. I felt chills run down my spine as the blade sprang to life.

"You're not his apprentice, are you?" said the mechanical, monotone voice. It was more of a statement rather than a question. "The Force feels different around you, but I can tell you can't use it."

"No, I'm not his apprentice," I said. He turned and saw Han dragging Luke back towards the _Millennium Falcon. _A sense of dread filled me as he watched them go. The uncomfortable feeling that grew within my heart reminded me of that time during the Chunin exams as Sasuke faced off against Orochimaru. I remembered how Orochimaru had looked at Sasuke during the Chunin exams, and the feeling in the pit of my stomach was reminiscent of that as this man watched my friends leave.

Unable to take the unease building inside me, I charged at him, slashing with my new sword. He caught me mid swing with his own and forced me back. I had his attention again, but I would not keep it if I didn't stay on him.

"Sakura! Come on!" I heard Han shout at me.

"Go on!" I shouted back. "I'll be fine!"

"No!" cried Luke, but Han was already pulling him back as more and more troopers came pouring out of every exit.

"You cannot win," said the massive shadow before me. I allowed myself a small, smug smile as I heard the Millenium Falcon take off.

"I've already won," I replied. _As long as my friends are safe, then I have won. _With a twirl of the sword in my hand, I attacked him.

I hadn't been sitting around doing nothing during Naruto's fight with Sasuke. I had been watching Sasuke carefully, studying his movements with his sword and how he made up for himself when he lost it for a short period of time. I would try using his fighting style, although my attempt would be somewhat pathetic, and it didn't help that I was so low on chakra.

His strength was incredible. As Ben's blade clashed with the red blade of this assailant, flash of light illuminating the mechanical features of my opponent, I could feel his power and ferocity nearly overcoming my own strength. I focused my chakra on my arms and hands to give them the strength I needed to withstand his blows. I dodged a strike to my head and swung my blade at his torso. He parried it easily, nearly knocking the sword from my hands. I tried to dodge another one of his blows, but I slipped on the waxed floor. His sword grazed my arm as I struggled to parry and dodge at the same time.

I let out a yelp of pain before jumping back just as he brought his lightsaber up to pierce me in the gut. I brought my hand up to my arm and began healing the wound; the usual green glow enveloping my hand. The saber, as I had predicted, cauterized the strike on impact which was good because it helped not only speed up the healing process, but kept out infection as well. I lifted the sword incase he tried to attack me while I was healing myself. Instead of pursuing me, however, he stood there, saber unmoving at his side.

"Who are you?" He asked me curiously. I glared sharply at him.

"It doesn't matter," I replied finishing up quickly. "I don't intend to live through this." It was true. My friends had escaped, and I didn't know how to fly a space ship so I was doomed to die here anyway. "Anyway, I could ask you the same thing! Who are you, and why did you kill Kenobi?"

"That old man's death has been long overdue," he replied angrily before he began advancing. Just as he was about to come at me, a few of the troopers stepped forward warily.

"Our weapons are set for stun, my lord," I heard one of them say. "Would you like us to handle this?"

"No," he said, his mechanical voice was filled with a hatred and anger I had heard from only one other person. "I will deal with her myself."

He charged forward with speed I didn't think he had, and I barely brushed his strike away. I jumped to the side as he brought his sword up in a graceful arc. I shifted, bringing the sword up to parry the next blow. He struck with such power, the light from the clash nearly blinded me, but that distraction was all he needed. With one swift movement, he swept the sword from out of my hands, and I backed up slightly, focusing my chakra back into my hands. I was ready to die fighting, but I would not get the chance. As I stared at the one I thought would be my last opponent, something clutched around my throat and lifted me up into the air.

I choked and tried to grasp at it, but there was nothing there. I tried using my chakra to open my windpipe, but whatever it was had too tight a grip. Suddenly, I was slammed into the wall, my head smacking into the steel wall... hard. The grip on my throat slackened, and I could breathe again. However, that meant little as I was quickly losing consciousness from the damage. I tried to use my chakra to start healing the wound, but it was a futile attempt.

As the world around me began to fade, I heard my opponent, whose name I still didn't know, say something to the troopers coming in, something that made my heart sink.

"Find a medic and get her to my ship."

* * *

**A BIG thank you and ehug to everyone who reviewed the last couple of chapters! You all are awesome! Keep them coming!**

**I tried to make it a point that Vader was looking directly at Luke during the fight****. It was tempting to have Sakura "see the wheels turning in Vader's head" but she's not that perceptive (it took her 400+ chapters for her to get that Naruto liked her, and even then Sai had to explain it to her).**

**Vader! Why you wear that stupid mask?! I mean, I know why, but _why_?! It makes it so hard to write from someone else's view cause no one can see your face! DX**

**Hey! If anyone out there wants to help me out (like, be a Beta Reader, cause heaven knows I need one), feel free to speak up! Got an idea for a plot twist? Tell me about it! I love getting ideas from my readers!**

**Remember, reviews are love! (Even the flames!)**


	4. The Devastator

_When I fell unconscious, the super-computer decided it was time to switch gears for awhile. She wanted to know what was going through the mind of one person in particular, my captor, Darth Vader, Dark Lord of the Sith. Why had he taken me alive and what plans did he have for my future?_

* * *

Back on the _Tentative IV, _he had been too furious at having a fast one pulled on him to notice the slight shift in the Force, and it wasn't until the capture of the freighter, the _Millennium Falcon_, that the change began to become more apparent. When he received the report of how there was no one aboard, he was sure there was something he was overlooking, something unusual he was sensing that he couldn't quite place.

It wasn't until later, after he was away from the _Falcon_, that he sensed his old master, Obi-Wan Kenobi, but there was still that nagging feeling, an unusual something he was sensing that he could not place.

Finally, after killing Kenobi, the thing that had given him that persistent feeling of unease manifested itself before him. The young woman with notable pink hair was certainly brave, and strong considering what she had done to those troopers. Perhaps she had been more foolish than brave, and her lack of knowledge over who he was had been proof of that.

When their fight began, it became clear that she had no previous training with a lightsaber. Her style was unusual, and her strength incredible for a seemingly meager young girl. The girl held his interest until her comrades tried to turn her away from their fight. The boy he saw, who had been particularly adamant about not leaving her behind, not only looked vaguely familiar, his force presence was impossibly massive. When the others escaped, he quickly began to lose interest in the girl and planned to capture her so that he might be able drag out the boy. Then he cut her arm, and his waning interest in her readjusted itself.

She healed herself. He would admit to himself, at least, that it was awe inspiring to watch her carefully knit the flesh of her arm back together, leaving not even a scar to suggest there had ever been any injury there to begin with.

She would be more useful than he had at first presumed. Perhaps she could even...

Vader watched as the troopers carried the unconscious girl to the medical bay, banishing the hopeful thoughts that were permeating his mind. He had orders relayed to the professionals in the medical ward that after they were sure she was stable, to move her to his flag ship, the _Devastator_. He looked at the girl's arm as those under his command carried her away.

The injury she had sustained when his lightsaber had cut her was gone, not even a scar was left behind. A truly amazing feat, but that was only the surface of what she was capable of. He had seen out of the corner of his eye what she had done to those seven storm troopers who had been guarding the ship. Some of them were still alive and were currently being carried to the medical bay with her, their armor cracked or shattered beyond repair.

The power she displayed, after all his years of traveling throughout the galaxy, he had never seen anything quite like it before, even back during his days as a Jedi. Even Jedi would be hard pressed to manage what she did, and she wasn't even Force-sensitive. However, while her abilities made her intriguing and formidable, the thing that interested him far more was her companions. Specifically, the young blond haired boy he had seen heading for the freighter.

If he was correct in his assumption on who the boys parentage was, the boy would definitely survive the upcoming battle. Vader would use the girl to draw the boy out. He would, of course, have to find a way to not only keep the girl under his control, but hide her from the Emperor if he could.

"My lord," said one rather nervous officer, bravely attempting to pull the Dark Lord from his contemplation. "Governor Tarkin is demanding your presence."

_Of course he does, _Vader thought viciously. The idea of force choking the governor was becoming more and more tempting by the minute. _One of these days…_

"My lord?" the officer asked before he suddenly became breathless. The unfortunate man continued to gasp for breath until Vader turned the corner, heading for the control room, before he was able to breathe once more. He massaged his neck a moment before returning to duty, grateful to be doing just that.

Darth Vader strode into the control room where Governor Tarkin stood staring at a huge, brilliantly lit screen. It displayed a vast sea of stars, but it was not the spectacular view which absorbed the Governor's thoughts at the moment. He barely glanced around as Vader entered.

"Are they away?" asked the Dark Lord.

"They've just completed the jump to hyperspace. No doubt they are at this very moment congratulating themselves on their daring and success." Now Tarkin turned to face Vader, a hint of curiosity in his tone.

"I am told by one of my men that you managed to capture one of them," he said.

"She gave herself up after I killed Kenobi," he said.

"You didn't kill her?" asked Tarkin surprised.

"I felt that she might prove useful later," replied Vader dismissively.

"Ah yes, the Force told you, I'm sure," said Tarkin in jest. If he were the sort of man to notice small subtleties, he would have seen Vader clench his fist in silent rage. However, Vader was here under orders from the Emperor to supervise Tarkin, and that, unfortunately, did _not_ include killing him when he was blatantly disrespected by the Grand Moff. Tarkin turned back to the screen, creases forming on his brow as he frowned. "You're sure the homing beacon is safely aboard the _Millennium Falcon_?"

"There is nothing to fear. This will be a day long remembered. It has already been witness to the end of Kenobi. It will soon see the end to the rebellion."

"I'm taking an awful risk, Vader," replied Tarkin. "It had better work."

* * *

Yavin was not a habitable world. In fact, one might even suggest that it was one of those gas giants that just barely missed starhood. It was a bright red giant in the Gordian Reach sector of the galaxy. It's atmosphere was made up of thick clouds swept about by violent, hurricane-force winds.

However, Yavin had many moons, 26 to be exact. Many of them were planet size, but only three were habitable. Each of Yavin's satellites was given a number by the systems discoverers, and of the three that were inhabitable, Yavin 4 was the most inviting. Glowing like an emerald on Yavin's necklace of moons, Yavin 4 was rich with plant and animal life, but it was not listed among those worlds that supported human settlements. Yavin was too far from the settled regions of the galaxy.

Perhaps that was what drew the rebel forces to this particular planet. It was quite an ingenious move on their part, Vader admitted to himself. Even he would have never thought to look here. Well, perhaps he would have, but that meant little at this point as the Death Star was closing in on its targeted destination. Behind it, an entire fleet of Star Destroyers took up formation. Among them, Vader's flag ship, the Devastator, took the lead, carrying one extra, unconscious passenger.

As the Imperial fleet, headed by the Death Star, drew in closer to the gas planet Yavin, several fighters came round the planet's orbit. This was what the rebels had managed to scrounge up when Princess Leia and the others had arrived, giving them the plans to the Death Star and the news that they had been followed.

There had been several preliminary attacks from both sides, a few of which were successful, but this attack from the rebels of 22 X-wing, 8 Y-wing, an 2 R-22 Spearhead starfighters would be the one to decide whether or not Yavin 4 would survive. Already there were reports of the rebels attempting to evacuate the planet because even if the attack on the Death Star was successful, there was still an entire fleet of star destroyers behind it.

The fighters worked their way passed the stations defenses and began taking out turrets, deflector shield towers, and they even managed to disable one of the giant ion cannons mounted on the station. It was during this minor attack that it became apparent that the turrets and all there other defenses were not effective against the small fighters, and Vader scrambled his personal fighter squadron and his own fighter as well.

While the main group of his squadron took on the other fighters, Vader and two others followed a separate group of rebel Y-wing fighters skimming along a trench headed for a small thermal exhaust port. Vader easily took all three out with little resistance.

A second run was made and succeeded in going down the run, but the proton torpedoes missed, barely scratching the surface. Vader shot him down just before the third group made their run down the trench. As Vader and his two lackeys followed the three rebel fighters, a familiar freighter came round the Death Star and shot down one of Vader's TIE fighters. The freighter forced Vader to disengage from the rebel fighters.

As Vader was distracted, he could still sense, even from a distance, the presence of the Force-sensitive leading the attack. His mind went back to that young boy he had seen with the girl he had managed to capture. There was a chance, if the boy was attached enough to her, that the boy would not fire, or he would miss since there was no way the boy knew that she was not on the Death Star.

What Vader didn't know was inside that cockpit, a small voice spoke to the boy, Luke, reassuring him that the girl, Sakura, was safe, and that they would see each other again when the time came.

Luke, trusting his feelings and the Force, fired the Proton torpedoes at the right time at the right angle. The three fighters and freighter barely had time to get away (pursued closely by Vader and his remaining TIE fighter) before the Death Star blew to pieces. Debris rocketed out in every direction. One of the rebel fighters deflector shields didn't rise in time for the oncoming destruction and was obliterated.

Vader also suffered some damage to his TIE/x1, and his lackey was killed by the oncoming remains of the station. He tried to stabilize his fighter, but one of his engines had given out, and the life support system was beginning to malfunction.

The rebels escaped, but they still had to evacuate the planet and scape as they had no chance against the massive fleet now coming for them. Vader, on the other hand, had no time to consider what to do about the rebellion as his TIE fighter was no flying dangerously out of control. If he could not manage to steady his flight pattern, regain control of his ship, there was a chance he could get pulled into the gravity of Yavin, and that wouldn't be what would kill him if he didn't get the life support systems of his ship working again. His suit could only do so much in the vacuum of space, and already he could feel the affects of the glitches, and his vision began to fade

His flag ship came to his rescue just as he lost consciousness. The _Devastator _managed to lock on its tractor beam and gently pulled the damaged fighter into the hangar. Awaiting inside, several troopers and medical officers pulled the unconscious Vader from his ship and carried him to the medical wing. Having suffered some damage as well, the _Devastator _was forced to retreat while the fleet continued with their assault, but that was only one of the reasons.

The technicians who managed Vader's suit had been on the Death Star when it was destroyed, and while the Devastator had a life support system that would last him a few days, but they needed to head back to Vjun immediately to get him another suit and keep him alive.

* * *

I've been knocked unconscious several times during my career as a ninja. The first time was during our team's first bell test against our own teacher, Kakashi. I had been ridiculously naive and selfish back then, caring only about my stupid crush on Sasuke. The memory made me want to go back in time and kick myself.

Another time I had lost consciousness was on the Heaven and Earth bridge when we were trying to glean information from Kabuto disguised as Sasori. I had found out about the meaning from Sasori who Chiyo and I had successfully managed to kill. Unfortunately, Kabuto betrayed Sasori, and he, along with Orochimaru, blew our cover when they tried to kill our team captain, Yamato, disguised as Sasori himself. They had been trying to take an important player out of the game. It ended up coming to blows between Orochimaru and a kyuubified Naruto. Kabuto attempted to attack Naruto, but his overwhelming power as a jinchūriki had swatted Kabuto's attack away like a fly, knocking me out in the process.

When I awoke, I had been horrified to find out that Naruto's terrible transformation had not been a dream. It broke my heart that day, and the pain has lingered ever since then, the pain of being unable to relieve him of such a terrible burden.

This time, when I awoke, I honestly wished beyond all hope to be in my bed, and that maybe everything that had happened to me so far, even the war against Obito, Madara, and Sasuke, had all just been a horrible nightmare. Instead, I awoke strapped to a table. A shadow looming over me ominously.

_No…_

"No…" I murmured. Everything came back to me in a rush. Waking up on the desert planet of Tatooine, meeting Luke and the others, the Millennium Falcon, Alderaan, the Death Star, all of it rushed through my mind, a giant river of memories drowning all my hopes.

"You're awake," said an unfamiliar voice. "That took longer than I thought it would."

As my eyes adjusted, the shadow became clear, more defined. A man with dark hair and eyes was leaning over me. In his hand, he held a small light as he peered at my eyes to test my pupils reaction to light.

I said nothing as I focused my chakra to my injuries. To my surprise, they were all well on the mend. _I guess it shouldn't surprise me too much, _my inner self observed. They had such amazing technology at their disposal; it made sense that they would have ways to heal such injuries.

"How are you feeling?" he asked.

My head felt like someone had dropped a ton of bricks on it. "I'd feel better if I wasn't strapped to this table."

"I'm sure you would," he replied. "However, I have my orders, as does the Captain. Lord Vader is aboard the Death Star right now, but he'll return in due time for your interrogation."

"I have nothing to tell," I told him insistently.

"Lord Vader seems to think otherwise," he said as he began packing his things to leave. "That's the only reason I can think of for him to want you alive and well."

"Lord Vader? Is that who I fought earlier?" I asked.

"Yes," replied the doctor, looking at me rather curiously. "You don't know who Lord Vader is?"

"Let's just say I'm new to this part of the galaxy," I replied.

"I find that difficult to believe," said the doctor as he finished up.

"You and me both," I replied.

I glared at him as he left the room, but my body was beginning to seize from terror. I remembered how my fight with Vader had ended, and my body shivered involuntarily. I had dealt with a lot of strange stuff during my time as a shinobi, but this was beyond frightening. How could anyone combat such an ability? Even that one time Ino had taken over my body during the chunin exams hadn't been as unbelievably frightening as those few moments I was suspended in midair unable to breath.

Taking a couple of calming breaths, I tried to get free by using my chakra enhanced strength to break free. What I got in response to my struggling was an electric shock to my body. I shrieked in pain as my body convulsed from the voltage.

After only a few seconds that felt like an eternity, it stopped allowing me to catch my breath and figure out what to do next. Breathing heavily, I tried to see what it was that had caused the painful electrocution. There were sensors on the metal straps so if I squirmed enough it would electrocute me again.

I took a deep breath and tried to relax. My weapons had already been taken from me, which wasn't surprising, but they had also taken Naruto's kunai with them. I had to get it back somehow. With Naruto's smiling face giving me strength, I tried one last time to break the bonds with my enhanced strength, and this time, I tried to numb the pain with that same chakra. Unfortunately, the shock was stronger the second time, and I screamed in agony.

"No…" I murmured as I felt myself lose consciousness from the sheer pain.

"Naruto…"

* * *

I was awoken once again to some extremely violent tremors from the ship. Alarms began to go off, making my already aching head hurt worse. I moaned in pain as I tried to block out the noise. I could here some commotion outside, and it was getting steadily louder until it finally burst through the door.

"Hurry! Get him inside!" someone shouted just as the door opened. Several people poured in through the doorway carrying the limp body of my captor.

Confused, I had to ask, even though I knew I probably wouldn't get an answer. "What's going on? What happened?"

As I had predicted, no one answered. They didn't even bother removing me from the room as they began working on getting his suit off and connected to an external life support system. His breathing apparatus was damaged, so they didn't have time to worry about me.

"Where's that technician that usually works on Lord Vader's life support?" asked one of the men working on getting the suit off.

"I believe he was on the Death Star when it blew up," was the answer.

_That's good. Now, no other planets will suffer the same fate as Alderaan._

"We have no choice," said the first. "Tell the Captain we have to retreat. We have to get to Vjun. The system we have here is not enough to keep Lord Vader alive for very long, and if we lose power, even for a few moments, it will kill him. We can't take that chance."

My attention was quickly distracted by the man they were unraveling from the armor and damaged life support. My eyes widened in horror at what I was seeing. This was the same Vader who I had fought on the Death Star so my friends could escape, but how could he have been as strong as he was and be so horribly damaged? The scars on his body, it was as though someone had tried to burn him alive. He was sickly pale, probably hadn't seen the sun for years. I felt tears burn my eyes, compassion and sadness overcoming my heart and my will.

_Sakura…_

I saw Naruto's broken body flash through my mind's eye. I had been unable to help him as he had not only been cut in half below his chest, but most of his vital organs had been completely obliterated. There was no way I could save him, but I had begun trying anyway.

_It's too late… Sakura..._

The words were out of my mouth before I could stop them. "I can help."

They ignored me at first. "I can help him!" I tried to shout. Still, they would not hear. "I can help!"

_That_ got their attention. "Why should we let a prisoner handle this?" asked the first man who I assumed was the doctor.

"Wait," said one of the others. "I remember one of the soldiers saying how when Lord Vader cut her arm, she was able to heal herself with some sort of magic or something."

"What? That's impossible!" shouted another.

"It's true," the doctor murmured. "When she was brought in, I was told that Lord Vader had indeed cut her arm, but there's not even a scar."

"Would you all quit talking about me like I'm not right here?!" I shouted at them. They recoiled slightly. I was already pissed about my abilities being called magic, not that I could blame them. "I can help him. You can hold a blaster to my head while I work. I don't care, but I can help him."

"It'll take us some time to get back to Vjun," said another officer.

The doctor looked conflicted. "Why would you offer to heal him?" He asked. "You have nothing to gain from doing this."

I looked at the broken man whom I knew nothing about. He had killed Ben Kenobi right in front of me; one of the few people who had believed me when I told him I wasn't from this world. I remembered the feeling of something I couldn't feel or touch gripping my throat and lifting me off the ground. The terror from being unable to combat what was choking the life out of me had been so overwhelming, I began trembling from the memory.

So why would I offer to help him? I wasn't entirely sure I knew the answer to that. The offer had just slipped out, and I ran with it.

Then, a plan began to take form in my head.

"I'm a medic first and foremost," I said, hoping that they would let me heal him.

The doctor was hesitant still, until Vader suddenly returned to consciousness and gasped. "Do it…" he said his voice a harsh whisper. "That's... an order..."

_He _wants_ me to heal him._

All hesitation vanished, and the doctor released me from the metal restraints. I stepped down as one of the guards pulled out his blaster and shoved its business end in my face.

"I'm warning you," he said. "Don't try anything funny, or I'll blow your head off."

"I understand," I replied calmly, my hands in the air in surrender. I turned to Vader, but he had fallen back into unconsciousness. I took a deep breath as I summoned chakra to the palm of my hand to begin the Mystical Palm Technique. I placed my hands on his chest and reached out tentatively with my chakra to survey the damage.

To say that it was extensive would have been quite the understatement. I could tell, as I let my chakra explore and examine his body, that a lot of the injuries that he had sustained were old. The damage to his lungs and heart was, if I had to guess, about twenty years old. It looked like the inside of his lungs had been burned significantly so if any foreign material were to enter his lungs, the agitation alone could kill him. The mask helped to keep all foreign material out. Also, whatever had burned his lungs obviously kept oxygen from entering his system as well, so there was minor damage to his brain as well, impairing his senses. That would have to be addressed as well.

That wasn't the only problem though. His spine... I could have talked about his spine all day. Each cervical nerve in the spine is given a number starting at C-1 at the base of the head where the cord meets the stem brain. There were metal implants in place of bone for his spine in his neck which meant that at some point in his life, his neck had been crushed. I carefully observed his neck and found that the neurons in C-4 had been severed, which would explain why he needed the breathing apparatus. Upon even closer examination, I found that the implant around C-4 helped to bypass the damage there, explaining his strength and agility.

This was the tricky part. I took a deep breath and began to heal his lungs and heart while also searching for stem cells to repair the damage to his brain and spinal cord. Stem cells are undifferentiated cells capable of giving rise to indefinitely more cells of the same type, and from which certain other kinds of cell arise by differentiation. Tsunade and I had experimented with a number of animals the use of stem cells to heal brain damage since brain cells are difficult to stimulate to grow, nearly impossible in fully grown humans and animals. Stem cells allowed us to replace old, dead neurons using neurogenesis, and our chakra would not only speed up the process but keep it under control as well.

The process is long and tiring, and if the damage is extensive, it would take more then one person to complete it. I was lucky the damage was not as bad as it could have been.

After healing his lungs and heart to maximize their capacity for breathing once I was done with the spinal injuries, I began looking any stem cells I could use to repair the damage to his brain and his spinal cord. Finding a good number of stem cells, I began, using only my chakra, to implant them into the damaged parts of the brain and spine and stimulated the DNA within for them to become neurons.

Several hours later of careful reconstruction of the part of the brain that controls breathing (the _medulla oblongata_ if you are curious), I began to focus on his injuries to his spinal cord. Since I had already put him under using my chakra as anesthesia, I turned him over so that I could work on his back and remove the implant on his spine that was bypassing the damage. I would not remove the parts that were replacing the bone for protection, but he would no longer need the circuitry within C-4.

"I'm going to remove some of the circuitry on his spine," I told the others.

"You are trying to kill him!" shouted one of the officers, shoving the blaster further in my face.

"No," I responded calmly. "I'm working on repairing his spinal cord. In order to do that, however, I need some of the implant at the base of his neck removed."

"Why are you going so far into healing him?" asked another one of the officers.

"My pride as a medic I guess," I replied, and it was true. I didn't need to heal him fully, just stabilize him until we reached our destination. However, when I saw all the damage he had suffered, the reasons for the mask and breathing apparatus, my pride as a medic overwhelmed my sense of self preservation. There was no doubt this man would not be as kind to me as I was to him right now, but my vanity didn't care. I was a medic, and damn if I didn't do everything in my power to heal him of his old but nearly fatal injuries.

So here I was. They began to carefully remove the implants circuitry, and, as quickly as I could (which was still a couple hours considering the extent of the damage to his spinal cord), I repaired the damage to his spinal cord, much to the amazement of the others.

Finally after several hours of painstaking surgery and chakra manipulation of his cells, we finished. The nerves in his spine were fully repaired, and he was able to breathe without the aid of the breathing apparatus. As a precaution, however, we placed an oxygen mask over his mouth and nose. It would be some time before his body would be able to breathe in normal air and not go into shock from the sudden change.

I only got to enjoy it for a few moments, however, as exhaustion caught up with me, and I passed out onto the floor of the medical bay.

* * *

I was severely disappointed when I found myself strapped to the table again when I woke up. I did the right thing as far as I was concerned! How could I learn any moral lessons, if the gods insisted on confusing me like this?!

I let out a soft moan as I carefully opened my eyes. I looked around, noticing immediately that no one else was around save for one other patient sitting on another table nearby. Vader had taken off his oxygen mask and was now staring wide-eyed at himself, amazed that he could now breathe and move about with out his armored suit. He still looked withered and debilitated do to the scarring of his head and body, but that was just the surface at this point. With a little work, all of that could be repaired, even his hair would grow back. Now, the only parts of his body that were mechanical were his arms and legs.

While I could regrow certain tissues using my chakra and stem cells, it was a whole other ball park to try to regrow entire limbs. For one, I would need Naruto's amazing and endless stamina in order to even start regrowing a limb, and let's not forget number and amount of nerves, muscle, skin and bone it would take to grow one back.

Vader turned to me, realizing that I was awake and studying him. His expression hardened as he stood up and towered over me. "You really are amazing, aren't you?" His voice was weak, raspy. He wasn't used to unregulated air yet.

I ignored him. "You should put the oxygen mask back on," I said.

"I've had it off for several hours already," he said as he stepped away from me and towards the suit the others had stripped off him when we were

I glared at him. "You going to kill me now that I've outlived my usefulness?" I asked. It was a legitimate question. All the bad guys I ever knew killed their help when it was no longer... well... helpful.

"No," he said turning away and reaching for his suit, much to my surprise. "I have other uses for you."

"Why are you putting that on?" I asked. "You don't need it anymore! I made sure of that!"

"No one else must know of your abilities," he said. "That is why I have killed all the personnel that helped you."

"What? Why?" I cried, the thought that my healing him had indirectly caused their deaths made my stomach churn. "They were loyal to you! They would have given their lives before betraying you! Why would you kill them?"

"Well then, it's a good thing they had the opportunity to do so, isn't it?" he snarled at me.

"You're a monster!"

"So I am told," he replied casually. "It was the only way to ensure that your strange healing abilities are kept a secret."

"No, it's not!" I argued, outrage stinging my eyes.

"I know you are not from this galaxy," he snapped. "Before I killed them, I had them take a sample of your DNA to see if you were in any records. As I had suspected, they found nothing on you. Your name, Sakura, there is no one in the entire galaxy with that name."

"What does that have to do with killing your own men?!" I cried, the tears seeping down my cheeks against my will.

"What I did was a mercy to them," he explained. "Their deaths were quick and painless. Which the Emperor would not have done if he ever got a hold of them." I stared on in horror at what he was saying.

"You don't know the power the Emperor wields," he continued, his voice shaking. From rage or fear, I couldn't tell. "He could easily have dragged what information he could from them before torturing them slowly to death."

I felt a chill go down my spine. A sign, I supposed, that he was telling the truth. "The Emperor? I thought you worked for him," I said in confusion. He didn't answer me as he began to put on the armor. "Why are you putting all that back on? I just got through healing you so that you wouldn't have to wear that anymore!"

He spared me a glance before proceeding to put on the armor, including the respirator. "No one, especially the Emperor, must know what you have done for me. All of your other questions will be answered in due time, my apprentice," he said before putting on the mask, followed by the helmet.

"Apprentice?"

"Yes, you must disguise yourself as my apprentice if you do not wish for others to suffer the same fate as those medical officers," he said. "It is for your protection as well as the protection of everyone else onboard. While you do not actually have any Force-sensitivity, it will explain the amazing feats you managed to accomplish on the Death Star."

"What is it that you want from me?!" I asked angrily, my pent up frustration and confusion lashing out. "I've already healed you to the best of my abilities!" That wasn't entirely true. There were still a few things wrong with him, but I didn't care at this point. My pride as a medic finally decided to take a backseat. "I'm no threat to you or your empire! I don't have any information on the rebellion! I am no use to you now!" My answer wrapped itself around my neck.

"You're life is not the only one at stake here," he growled, his mechanical voice in place. "If you cooperate, I will not be forced to kill everyone on board this vessel. Am I clear?"

"Crystal!" I gasped. He released me, and I panted severely, nearly hyperventilating from the terror he evoked from me.

"This is so confusing," I said in frustration as he released me from the table. I stepped down from it, rubbing at my sore wrists. "Are you trying to usurp the throne from the Emperor or something?"

"Yes, now be silent," he ordered. "Follow me and remain close. Until word has travelled that you are my apprentice, there will be hostility towards you so watch yourself. Call me 'master' from now on."

"Yes..." I said pursing my lips together since I didn't really want to say it. As he looked back at me, however, it seemed I had no choice but to do as he ordered. I let out a small sigh of resignation. "Master."

* * *

**Whew! A long chapter to make up for the last one which had been relatively short.**

**I rewrote this chapter like twenty times! Which is my excuse for why it's a little late...**

**Please note that I am not a brain surgeon or even a nurse for that matter. A lot of this was on-the-fly research... ****My only hope is that I made this believable enough, and that no one is too upset at how severely I am bending the rules...**

**Reviews (even flames) are love.**


	5. Vjun

When we arrived at the bridge, the captain was surprised to see us. Surprised to see Vader up and about when he had been told to return to Vjun cause they didn't have the equipment to keep Vader alive, and surprised to see me since I was supposed to be a prisoner.

"My lord," he said. "We left the Yavin system several hours ago. We should be coming into the Vjun system in a short while. As I'm sure you are aware, the doctor had told us to head there because you were in critical condition."

"What are the reports of the battle over in the Yavin System?" he asked, ignoring the unstated question of his sudden recovery.

"Most of the rebel fleet has retreated and escaped was the latest report, my lord," he said. "They did, however, manage to successfully capture a number of rebels and are awaiting orders for their fates."

"I want names of all who were captured," said Vader. "I will decide afterwards what will happen to them. Continue your course to the Vjun system. Let me know when we're out of hyperspace so I may report to the Emperor."

"Yes, my lord." The captain looked at me before turning back to Vader. "If I may, Lord Vader, what is the girl doing with you?"

I expected, to some degree, Vader to start choking the man through the Force for having asked such a question. To my astonishment, he answered rather amicably. "She is my new apprentice," he said. The terror was papable. I guessed that word of my abilities had spread already.

"She must be of some talent if she caught your eye, Lord Vader," said the captain, whose face was noticeably paler than before. "I had heard rumors of her abilities."

I glared at him. I didn't like how he was talking about me like I wasn't there. Vader must have sensed my anger. "I would suggest, captain, that you do not cross her. For your own safety."

The poor captain started to sweat. Vader was obviously trying to terrorize the poor guy, and while my heart went out to him, I had to play my part to keep _him_ alive. I crossed my arms over my chest and leaned slightly, trying to look intimidating. It was kind of hard to do with a seven foot former cyborg standing next to me. I thought it looked more comical.

"Y-yes, of course," he said. "Welcome to the Devastator, Commander..." He waited for me to give him my name.

Commander? Who? Me? "Sakura Haruno, and thank you, captain," I said after a moment.

Vader, not caring for any more formalities, turned and walked away, and I followed behind closely. As we walked down the halls which were semi empty, I decided to ask a few questions pertaining to my time as his fake apprentice. I was careful to wait until we were alone before speaking. "So I guess being your apprentice makes me a commander, huh?" I said. "By the way, as your 'apprentice,' what am I supposed to be pretending to learn?"

"I'm sure during the time you were with Kenobi he spoke of the Force to you," he replied.

"He mentioned it," I said. I realized that I was talking him as casually as I might speak to any of my friends. Any terror I had was gone so long as I did as I was told.

"What he probably did not tell you was that there are more than one aspect of the Force," he said. "The most powerful aspect is the Dark side. It is about survival and unleashing your inner power. You must rely on the feelings of anger and aggression in order to truly use the Dark side."

I waited for him to tell me more, but he remained silent after that. I didn't need to know more than that, I guessed. "Ben never mentioned the dark side. He just spoke of the Force as a whole."

"Your time with him was relatively short," replied Vader, "and his name was not 'Ben' Kenobi. It was Obi-Wan Kenobi."

"Oh," I said genuinely surprised. "He gave me the name of Ben Kenobi. I wonder why he would change it."

"It does not matter," said Vader. "He is dead."

"How can you be sure?" I asked, thinking back to when I last saw him. "His body… it vanished."

"I know."

"Does that happen often here? Do bodies disappear when they die?"

"No," replied Vader. "I do not know what happened with Kenobi, but I am sure he is dead."

"Another Force power?" I asked curiously. He turned to look at me. I guess to see if I was asking out of honesty, which I was, to my own surprise.

"Yes," he said. "I've had enough questions from you."

"All right," I said, swinging my hands behind my back and holding them there. "But isn't there anything you'd like to ask me?"

I half expected him to choke me for disobeying a direct order, but he merely continued walking. "As a matter of fact, yes," he said slowly, carefully. "Why did you do it?"

"Do what?"

"Those old injuries you treated," he explained. "You did it willingly, and you went far beyond what even I had wanted from you. Why?"

I shrugged. "Pride as a medic," I answered, conveniently ignoring the part of my reasoning that involved compassion. I had a particular feeling that he would not be pleased to know that it was partly done out of sympathy. The man had been forced to live behind a mask for at least twenty years, if my guess was correct. It was a wonder he hadn't gone completely insane from the lack of human contact. Not to mention how terrible and sad he looked as he had laid there on the operating table. Even as I walked with him, knowing what he had done to the men who had helped me, I still didn't regret my decision.

"Pride…" he repeated. "You take great pride in your work as a Medic?"

"Yes, I was trained by the best in the world I come from. I was lucky she was willing to take me in as her pupil."

"Who was your teacher?" he asked.

"Her name was Tsunade, and she was renowned as the greatest Medical ninja in the world," I said. I felt a barrage of emotions run through me. Sadness, regret, and pride were the most prominent as I talked about my teacher. "She taught me everything I know about being a medical-nin, and I had hoped to surpass her one day."

Vader didn't answer as we passed several officers who stopped to salute him as we passed. I waited until we were out of earshot before I continued. "She was also the Hokage, the leader of our village. She was almost like a mother to me. I went to her to learn because I didn't want to feel so useless after one of my teammates had abandoned the village. I wasn't able to stop him from leaving, and I thought if I was stronger, maybe I could have stopped him."

_Stopped him from becoming the monster he was._

"You think very highly of your teacher," said Vader, his voice was quiet, as though he had spoken softly.

"Of course I do," I said. "I think highly of all my teachers."

We continued on in awkward silence, and it occurred to me that I should have been paying attention to where we were going. As I observed, I came to realize that each hall was different, which was a nice change from the insanity of the Death Star. We came to some elevators and took one to Vader's private chambers.

The terror I had felt back in the medical wing hit me full force once I realized we were alone. It occurred to me that I really had no idea what he wanted from me. He hadn't given me a straight answer when I had asked back in the medical bay.

I gathered my courage and swallowed. "Why are you having me pretend to be your apprentice? What is it you want from me?"

"Information," he said. "During our fight on the Death Star, I noticed one of your companions was extremely force-sensitive." My heart leaped into my throat at the thought at who he might be talking about, as though there were any doubts. "That boy—he wasn't much older then you—what is his name?"

"I don't really know," I replied. It was partly true. "He never gave me his name."

"I find that difficult to believe," said Vader as he took off his mask and helmet. "All I want is his name, even if it's just his last or first name." He looked me in the eye as though he wanted to see the fear in my eyes. I was his first and only human contact in years. He wanted to see the emotions like fear and anger in my face, in my eyes. I tried not to look away. His eyes were a bright yellow, filled with a familiar hatred that made me think of glowing red eyes. "Give me his name."

I pressed my lips together in defiance before something grabbed my heart and began to squeeze. I let out a cry as I fell to my knees from the pain. The feeling left my heart and crawled down to my stomach and wandered around there.

"Stop," I begged, tears pouring down my face.

"Your energy, your force presence is odd," said Vader casually, as if he wasn't crushing my insides. He reached down and grabbed my face, forcing me to look at him. "I can manipulate your body as easily as I can anyone else's. However, I cannot seem to read your feelings as well as I can others. Perhaps this is because you are not from this universe. In any case, I will not tolerate disobedience, or have you forgotten you are not the only one on this ship that I can kill easily."

"No!" I cried.

"His name," said Vader, his eyes flashing. I trembled from heartbreak, fear, and pain.

"Luke, that's the name he gave me," I said, clenching my fists in anger. I had tasted the bitterness of betrayal, and here I was, delivering that same thing to one of the few who cared about me. I hated myself for it, my selfishness, but I was afraid to die. I would not be responsible, directly or not, for the deaths of the people on this vessel. The pain eased slightly, but not enough to relieve me. A small reward for my obedience.

"Where did you meet him?" he asked. "Tatooine?"

"Yes," I choked. _I'm sorry, Luke! I'm so sorry!_

The pain stopped, and I let out a relieved gasp, checking quickly my body for any damage he might have done. I was grateful to find nothing. He shoved me back and stood straight. "That's all I need to know... for now."

"Why are you so interested in him?"

"I believe it was him that destroyed the Death Star," he said.

_That's right, _my inner self laughed. _One of the officers said it had been destroyed. If that really was you, Luke, way to go!_

"Serves you and the Empire right," I said angrily. My punishment for it was a good squeeze on my heart. I cried out, thinking my heart was about to burst before he released me.

"You would do better to remember your place," he said threateningly.

"Is that all you wanted from me?" I asked. "Information about Luke?"

"No," he said. "I need you for—" He was cut off by his own violent coughing.

Despite the torture I just endured from this man, I stood up and approached him carefully, gently extending my hand and chakra to ease his coughing. It would be some time before he could breathe easily without the mask and suit.

"For this?" I asked softly as his coughing began to die down.

"Yes," he said finally gathering enough breath to speak. He looked at me, and his eyes were no longer yellow as they had been when he had been crushing me. They were an icy blue that chilled me right down to my core. They burned away, returning to that yellow hue as he knocked me away again.

I fell back on my backside after he pushed me away. I glared angrily at him as he stood straight once more and reluctantly put his mask and helmet on. Perhaps one of these days I would learn that "no good deed ever goes unpunished." "The main reason you are posing as my apprentice is that I need you close for any medical needs I have. You are still my prisoner."

"Okay," I replied.

"In the meantime, I will order a droid to help educate you on what you need to know about this galaxy," he said.

"Could we start with reading and writing?" I asked as I stood back up. "When I was on the _Millennium Falcon_, I tried to read a few things, but your alphabet is completely foreign to me."

"Very well," said Vader. "You will begin once we reach my fortress on Vjun. I have a droid that can at least help you get started."

"All right then," I agreed. "What about my weapons?"

"What about them?"

I fidgeted anxiously. I doubted he would allow this small request, and I was afraid he might torture me again for asking "There was a kunai, a knife with… with a tag wrapped onto the handle. I would like it back.. please."

"And why should I give you any of your weapons back?" he asked, but I am sure he knew the answer anyway. He just wanted me to say it.

"I don't have to have them all, just that one," I said. "I'm not going to undo all that work I did on you by killing you in your sleep or something. I also know that if I try to escape, you'll kill everyone onboard here. Not that it matters. I don't know how to fly a ship or anything, and besides, that knife, I would never use it in battle. It belonged to…" I swallowed thickly, "to an old friend of mine. I won't cause you anymore trouble. I'll even help you with whatever you need, if I could have that back."

He paused a moment. "I will consider it."

A small device lit up on the table next to him. Vader pressed a button.

"Lord Vader," said the captain as a small version of himself appeared on top of the device. I am sure my eyes grew three sizes. "We just came out of hyperspace in the Vjun system."

"Very good captain," said Vader. "Prepare my shuttle, my apprentice and I will depart immediately. You may also begin on repairs to the Devastator."

"Yes, my lord." The miniature version of the captain vanished, and I stared at it, barely comprehending what was going on.

"How—? What—?" I stuttered.

Vader ignored my astonishment. "Let's go," he ordered.

* * *

Vjun, as I had learned, was a big dead rock, but an important one. It was apparently best known for its acidic rainfalls and resultant lack of plant life. Darth Vader explained to me how this was where he studied the Dark side of the Force.

We left the _Devastator_ on Lord Vader's private shuttle so that the Star Destroyer (as it was called) could be repaired from the damages suffered when the Death Star had been destroyed. I watched carefully as Vader guided the shuttle down to the dead planet below, trying to learn how to fly one of these contraptions while strapped down in the copilot's chair. A "nice" little reminder of how I was still his prisoner despite my fake status as his apprentice.

When he had strapped me down in the chair, I had tried to ask him why, but I guess he was tired of my questions, or maybe it was my voice he was tired of because he had silenced me using the Force. As we descended to the planet below, it became quite clear that he didn't need a copilot to help him control the ship as anything he couldn't reach was accessed via Force powers. It was pretty amazing to watch him work.

We continued on in complete silence and only because he had "shut off" my vocal cords. I had already tried asking a few questions already, but no words came out so I just sulked in my chair.

As we got closer to the planet, I could see the large building as we got closer. I looked over at Vader, hoping he would at least let me ask what that building was, but he just continued piloting the ship. As we got closer, I realized that "large" didn't even come close to the actual size of the building. Huge? Giant? Enormous?

What was that word Ino used once? Ginormous?

Once we landed in the hangar of the castle, Vader released me from the chair. I followed him obediently, expecting to be swarmed by a number of servants. I guess I shouldn't have been to surprised to see that it was completely empty save for one droid standing at the bottom of the ramp. It looked like See Threepio, but in silver instead of gold.

"Lord Vader," it said with a rather feminine voice as opposed to Threepio's more masculine voice. "I was not expecting you for some time."

Vader nodded to it before continuing on out of the hangar.

"Oh," it said just realizing that someone else was with him. "A guest? What's your name?"

"Um… Sakura… Sakura Haruno."

"Pleased to meet you. I am Teefour Beenine (T4-B9)," replied the droid as it shuffled to keep up with me and Vader.

"Show her to her room, Teefour," Vader ordered. "I have business to attend to."

"Yes, my lord. This way, please," said Teefour, gesturing as much as it could for me to follow. I took one last glance at Vader before following the droid to my room.

_This place is really gloomy._ I decided as we continued down different corridors. There were hardly any decorations on the walls or anything, and the windows were plain with no real design to them. To make it worse, it was raining outside, the raindrops on the glass casting odd shadows over the bare halls and floors. There were a couple tapestries hanging on the walls, but nothing grand or even remotely interesting enough to chase the perpetual gloom this place had.

Finally, the droid stopped at a door and opened it to reveal my room. It was large, larger than it needed to be, but I wasn't about to complain. It was almost completely empty save for the bed and what looked like a substantial dresser beside it. On the other side of the bed was a door that I assumed lead to the bathroom.

"This will be your room for now," said Teefour. "My master is constantly out on missions for the Emporer so I don't doubt you will be leaving soon."

"Thank you," I said softly as the droid left, the door closing behind it. Heaving a sigh, I turned and stepped over to the bed before sitting down. I carefully pulled out Naruto's kunai from my otherwise empty pouch and held it close to my heart.

I carefully reviewed everything that happened to me since I had arrived in this dimension. Meeting Luke, Ben (or Obi-Wan as he was apparently called), Han, Chewbacca, Leia, I wondered if I would meet any of them again. I particularly wanted to see Luke again. Besides Obi-Wan, he had been the only one who had been genuinely kind to me. Of course, that could have just been because I helped protect him from that one alien inside the cantina on Tatooine.

My thoughts of Luke ultimately lead me back to Naruto and his last words to me. I choked back a sob as I thought about how the life had faded from his blue eyes. I loved him, truly. After it was too late, I realized how dedicated my heart was to him. Yes, I loved Sasuke, but even the pain I felt after he had left and had become a monster unlike any other didn't even compare to the pain of losing Naruto forever. His last breath had been a declaration of love for me, and I never got to tell him how much I loved him in return.

I cried softly, holding the kunai close as I fell asleep to dream of blue eyes and bright grins.

* * *

**Commander Sakura has a nice ring to it, doesn't it? I don't know if being Vader's apprentice does make one a commander in the Imperial navy in _Star Wars_, but it does in this story, so there._  
_**

**You hate me, don't you?**

**Well, even if you don't hate me, you will in a second. I may or may not update next week as I want to work a little on my new fic _I Hate You. _Plus, I'm having a little trouble figuring out where I want to go from here. I have an idea, but... writer's block, you know?**

**Reviews (even flames) are love.**


	6. Kuat

I will never forget it.

I will never forget how bright, how loud that chidori was as it pierced Naruto's middle. I'll never forget the mixed look of shock and sadness on Naruto's face, I am absolutely certain I will _never _forget… no, I will make _sure_ I never forget that deranged grin on Sasuke's face as he pulled his hand out of the abdomen of the only person who still called him "friend."

_"Naruto!"_

_Sasuke began laughing as he looked down at his dying friend. He didn't do anything to stop me. He just watched as I ran to Naruto's side and began to try and undo the damage, but that was impossible. Sasuke's chidori had not only destroyed several vital organs, but had completely severed Naruto's spinal cord. On top of that, instead of ripping his hand out the way he had entered, Sasuke had torn his hand through Naruto's side. Even with my help, there was no way Naruto would live through this._

_…especially with the Kyuubi gone…_

_"I told you!" Sasuke laughed as other ninja tried to hold him off. He began to kill them one by one, slowly exhausting himself. "I told you! There were only two ways this was going to end! Naruto! Either you kill me! Or you just become another victim I kill!"_

_His laughter faded away from my hearing as I focused fully on Naruto's injuries. The tears were falling freely, and I didn't bother to wipe them away. My hands were trembling as I worked diligently to stop the bleeding, quickly covering themselves in Naruto's blood. I knew it was pointless, but I wasn't about to stop._

_"Sakura-chan… stop… it's too late…"_

_"No!" I shouted at him. I wasn't going to hear it. I wasn't going to say it. Admitting it would make his coming death into a reality, and I didn't want that. "No, you're going to be all right. You'll see." I was lying. I knew he hated it when I lied, but I didn't care right now. "You have to live Naruto. You _have _to!"_

_"Sakura-chan… I'm dying…"_

_"No!"_

_"I'm sorry…" He began coughing up blood._

_"Don't talk," I said, "just let me do this."_

_"Sakura…" he continued after he regained his breath. He didn't even bother with the affectionate honorific. A gasp of a sob escaped from my lips as I began to cry harder. "I'm sorry… I couldn't keep my promise to you… my promise of a life time…"_

_"I already told you," I said, weeping openly now. "You don't have to keep that promise."_

_"I just want… you to know…"_

_"Stop talking like that!" I shouted. "You're going to be all right!"_

_"Take care… of yourself… stop Sasuke…"_

_"No!" I screamed. "You're going to be fine!"_

_"I'm sorry…"_

_"No!"_

_"I love you…"_

_I thought I had died…_

I wish I had died.

* * *

The images slowly faded away as I blinked away the last of my tears. My head felt like someone was taking a hammer and chisel to my skull and pounding away endlessly. I tried to feel my way through the haze as I sat up and rested my head on my knee. I had been having the same nightmare since I had first arrived on this planet, and despite being a medical nin, none of my techniques were working to make it stop.

A flash of light and distant roar of thunder brought me out of my thoughts. I could hear the wind howling and the pitter patter of the rain on my window. It was dark out so I couldn't see it, only the occasional flashes of light from the lightning illuminated the tiny droplets on my window.

"I can't believe it's been a month since I've been here," I thought aloud to myself as I did what I could for my headache. Not much had happened since I had arrived on Vjun. Vader had left a couple of times probably to interrogate captured rebels for location of Luke or the Galactic Alliance. He had left a few days ago, and I wondered vaguely if he had returned.

The answer to my wonderings came when the door to my room opened. Golden light from the hallway filtered through the opening as Teefour came in and set something down on the bedside table. "I'm glad you're awake," said Teefour. "Lord Vader wishes to see you immediately."

I knew why. I merely nodded my understanding.

"He also gave me orders to have you put on this uniform," Teefour continued, gesturing towards the clothes on the table. I looked over at the black uniform I had seen some of the officers on the Death Star and the _Devastator_ wearing. My lips turned down in a frown. He had given that to me some time ago, and I had refused to wear it at the time. I wanted to hold on to what I could of my old life.

I still didn't want to wear it.

"No," I said standing up. "Where is he now?"

"He was in the library last I saw him," said Teefour. I began to head out of the room, leaving the confused protocol droid behind. "Uh, Miss Sakura!" It called out to me. I stopped and turned to it. "Lord Vader was most insistent that you wear the uniform."

"I can't wear it," I said. _Not yet…_

Nothing more was said as I headed down the hall towards the library. Whenever he was here, the library was where he would spend the most time. He would turn on these strange devices he called holocrons to learn more about the Dark Side and the Force in general, or he would spend time using the Holonet searching for information concerning Luke. However, Kenobi must have done a good job keeping Luke hidden from the rest of the galaxy because all efforts Vader made turned fruitless. It frustrated Vader and made my life miserable.

Of course, I wasn't sure I entirely deserved any less.

I shivered in my nightgown as a sudden draft blew right through me. There was something extremely creepy about this planet. It reminded me of that time Naruto had fought Orochimaru at the Heaven and Earth bridge. The Kyuubi's chakra emanated such evil intentions; it was like something cold slimy was crawling all over my skin. I got the same feeling from this castle.

It didn't help that the only night gown I could find was this absolutely ridiculous thing I was currently wearing. It was a steel blue gown that had no sleeves. Just some beads to hold the satiny cloth in place. I had laughed when Teefour told me that it was a nightgown. Yeah, my nightgown at home was an extra-extra-large T-shirt, not something that looked like I could wear to some kind of formal outing. I hadn't laughed that hard in a long time.

The door to the library opened. It didn't really look like a library to me. There were no books, not even those devices that they used in place of books. Vader was sitting in the middle of the floor on his knees. His back was to me so I couldn't see what he was doing, but he wasn't wearing his armor or helmet. I decided to take a moment to admire my handiwork on Vader. When I first saw him, he had looked like an old man who had been in a coma for years. His skin had been pale, cool, and clammy.

Now, however, the color was finally coming back to his skin, and his hair was growing back too. He was still fairly pale because he was still wearing the helmet and armor, but other then that, he looked like he was finally coming out of the coma. I felt a small smile brush my lips before I forced it away. The last time my pride as a medic over came my common sense, I got other people killed, even if it was indirectly.

"You may come in, Sakura," he said without looking at me. I tried not to shiver at the way he said my name as I stepped into the room, the door closing behind me. I looked over at the clock as I headed farther into the room. It was time for another healing session, and perhaps that was all he wanted to see me for. I could hear the rumbling of thunder outside as I sat behind him and gently pressed my palms on his back, tentatively reaching into his body with my chakra. He let out sigh of relief as the pain in his chest receded once again. I closed my eyes and tried to focus strictly on healing.

"The Emperor wishes to meet you," he said after several minutes of silence.

I felt my blood go cold. "What?" I said, disbelieving what I had heard.

"It's not surprising," he said. "Even if it is only a fake status, naturally, he would be interested in who I have acquired as my new apprentice."

I was silent for a moment, trying to find my voice. "When do I meet him?" I finally asked.

"I've bought us some time, so you can relax a little," he replied. "I want to try and capture Luke first."

"Did you ever find out what his last name is?"

"No," he said, "none of the rebels we managed to capture at the Battle of Yavin knew his name, but I am sure that he will come to us."

"Why?"

"I have allowed the construction of my new ship being built on Kuat to leak to the general public." he answered.

"I thought your ship was being built on Fondor?"

"It is," he replied. "However, the project is too fragile at this point to use as a trap, the Kuat shipyards will do nicely. I plan to be present during the 'construction' of my fake ship, and you with me."

"Why me? If it's to use me as bait, it won't work," I said. "He probably thinks that… that I'm dead." _T__hat he killed me._

"I am sure he will come," he said. "He thinks you are alive, of that I am sure."

"How can you be so sure?"

He finally turned and looked at me, as though he was going to answer, but he stopped when he saw what he was wearing. His eyes flashed, and he grabbed my throat, slamming me down on the floor. I choked out a surprised gasp.

"Do you know what you are _wearing_?!" he shouted at me, the window suddenly cracking. I could feel his body trembling from the uncontrollable rage wracking his body as he leaned over me and pinned me to the floor. Fear took hold of me as I began clawing at his hand, trying to get him to release me, but his grip only tightened. I shook my head in terror. Black started creeping into my vision, and for one dreadful moment, I thought he was going to kill me. He finally loosened his grip, but he didn't let go. I could see how much he was trying to restrain himself from killing me.

"Do not ever wear that _again_," his voice barely above a whisper. "Do you understand…"

I nodded as he released me. Without looking back, I fled from the room, coughing gasping for breath, and ran straight back to my room. The door shut behind me before I leaned back on it and sunk to the floor. As the adrenaline started wear off, I burst into hysterical bawling. Why would a nightgown (if you could call it that) set him off like that?

"Oh, excuse me," Teefour said. The 'droid' had been cleaning up my room when I had interrupted. "Is something wrong Miss Haruno?"

I could barely reply through the sobs that were afflicting my body.

"You poor dear," it said. "I'll go get you something to drink. That should help you."

Once Teefour was gone, I promptly began taking the nightgown off. It took everything in me not to rip it into shreds, but my fear from earlier kept me from doing so. I looked at the uniform on the bedside table. I'm not sure how long I stared at it, but I did eventually put it on after Teefour came back with a warm drink.

As I looked at myself in the mirror wearing the black uniform of an Imperial Officer, my hair pinned up under the hat, I felt a small part of me cry out in agony. It had been the same part of me that had stopped me from killing Sasuke back just outside the Kage Summit. That whole fiasco seemed like a lifetime ago now. That same part of me had been silenced after he had killed Naruto.

I wondered vaguely what had brought it back to life.

Teefour returned just after I put on the uniform. "Oh! I'm glad you've got your uniform on," said the 'droid. "Lord Vader is requesting your presence in the main hangar. He told me to come get you before I could get you some tea."

"That's all right Teefour," I said, straightening myself out. "I'm not all that thirsty anyway."

* * *

The trip to Kuat was rather uneventful, to my relief. Vader had seemed to regain his composure at the very least. Though he had made it clear that he still was not pleased with me. Construction on a new Star Destroyer had, in fact, begun, but it was just another ship and nowhere near the same size as the Executor was going to be. We just needed something to bring the rebels out into the open, and one of the rumors being spread was that a new weapon was being built into this Star Destroyer.

The days seemed to pass by slowly as we waited to see if the rebellion would take the bait. It wasn't until construction was halfway complete that the rebellion finally made its move. Vader and I were in the middle of another healing session when it happened.

"I don't think he's coming," I ventured. This conversation wasn't anything new between us. It was my way of attempting to defy Vader's control over me.

When he didn't respond, I went on. "He probably knows that this is a trap. Maybe not for him, but for the rebellion, definitely."

"I do not care about the rebellion," he said. "He is their power. Without him, they will whither and die."

"You don't know that," I said.

"Since the Rebellions beginning, there has been at least one force sensitive driving it," he said. "Whether it is a former apprentice of mine or my s—" He suddenly stopped himself. "...my soon-to-be new apprentice, there has always been someone in it."

"Former apprentice?" I asked. "You had someone before me?"

"Yes, he is dead now."

I swallowed hard, suddenly losing my courage to say anything more. I tried to focus on healing him, but my mind began to wander against my will. Questions I hadn't asked myself before crawled into my consciousness.

Did Vader want Luke as his apprentice? His _real _apprentice? Why? What would he do with me after he had Luke?

I was fairly certain I knew the answers to those questions. I just had to figure out how to keep it all from happening.

"He's here," he said suddenly, standing up.

I stood up behind him as he began putting on his armor, hardly believing him. "You mean Luke?"

"Yes, I can sense him," he muttered just as he was putting on the mask and helmet. I moved to follow him, but my body suddenly stopped responding to me.

"You are to remain here," he said. "He will come to try and rescue you, and when he does, we'll be ready for him."

"No!" I shouted as I lunged for the door. Before I could make it, however, my vision began to blur. "No!"

"Don't worry," he said, his voice fading. "You'll wake up soon enough."

* * *

"Sakura!"

Someone was shouting at me. I tried to sort my thoughts, but it was like trying to swim through a pool full of jello.

"Sakura!"

"Naruto...?"

"No, it's me Luke."

"Luke?" His image was blurry, but I could tell who that was. "Luke!"

"Sakura! I'm so glad to see you!" He exclaimed as he wrapped his arms around. His embrace was warm. I felt myself smile and lean into it before my head finally cleared.

"Luke!" I cried pulling away slightly. "How did you find me?"

"Ben," he said. "When I destroyed the Death Star, he told me that you were okay. Then we heard that Vader had a new apprentice with pink hair and I knew that was you. We found our chance when we heard that Vader's new flagship was being built here."

His eyes softened from the excitement as he hugged me again. "I almost doubted that you were alive," he said breathlessly. "I thought... I thought you were dead."

"It's okay, Luke," I whispered, glad to know that at least one person in this vast galaxy cared for me. "I'm a lot tougher then I look." I suddenly stood up, dragging him up with me. "You can't be here! It's a—!"

"Come on kid!" said another familiar voice. "We gotta get out of here!"

"Han?"

"Hey, Sakura, good to see you," he said standing just outside the door. That infuriating smug smile glinting at me. I smiled back.

"Is Leia or Chewie with you?" I asked.

"No, we had to leave them and the _Falcon_ behind," said Han. "Now come on! Let's go!"

"You guys shouldn't have come!" I said as Luke and I stepped towards the door. "It's a—" The door closed on its own, locking us inside.

"...trap! Han! Are you okay?!" I called through the door.

"Yeah, I'm fine!" He shouted through the door. "The door's locked. Do you have any way of getting out?"

Before I could answer, I heard shots being fired and the sound of running foot steps. "Han? Han!"

"Hang on," said Luke pulling out his lightsaber. "Maybe I can cut out an exit."

I heard heavy footsteps, and my heart froze in my chest. Vader was coming. "No," I said. "Just wait." I leapt up onto the ceiling and crouched out of sight for anyone who opened the door. How could he have gotten here so fast? Had I been unconscious that long?

Luke got into a defensive stance as the door was being unlocked, and time seemed to slow down as we both waited anxiously for the door to open. I knew I had to act fast, or there would be no escape for us. The door opened, and the familiar shadow filled the doorway and stepped in. I could see the horror on Luke's face, but I didn't give myself or anyone else time to think. I dropped down from the ceiling behind Vader and kicked him in the back, sending him careening into the wall.

He let out a cry as he impacted the far side, and Luke and I were out the door as fast as either of us could manage. Lightsaber lit up and began cutting through opponents as we fled through the halls.

"What about Han?" I asked. "Do you think he got away?"

"Yeah!" shouted Han as he was sprinting towards us from another hall. "I got away, but we're going to have to take a different shuttle," he said as soon as he caught up with us. "The one we brought isn't leaving any time soon."

"Why?" asked Luke.

"They blew up the one we came in," Han answered.

"What now?"

"You're the brains," Han snapped at Luke. "You figure it out!"

Having spent some time here, I sort of knew my way around, but tromping around the hallways was a quick way to getting caught.

"Follow me!" I said. "We'll take the ventilation shaft."

Alarms went off almost as soon as we were inside the vents. We could here the hallways fill with soldiers looking around frantically for us. We crawled carefully and quietly towards one of the many hangars that I knew about. I prayed that the shuttle I had seen in there multiple times was still there, or getting off this planet was going to be that much harder. Sure enough, it was sitting there, unguarded and waiting for us.

"What luck!" muttered Han out of relief.

"I bet it's a trap," I said studying the exits. If Vader was as desperate as I thought he was... "but I don't know where else to go." Just in case, I focused my chakra into my hands as I began to perform seals. It was a jutsu Tsunade had taught me. She told me about how when Naruto and Jiraiya had gone to get her how they had fought with her and Shizune against Orochimaru and Kabuto. She had used this same technique on Kabuto.

_Nervous System Rupture Technique_

_Ranshinshō no jutsu_

"What are you doing?" Han asked me.

"Just preparing myself," I said. "Let's go."

After removing the shaft exit plating, we jumped down and ducked behind some cargo to make sure the coast was absolutely clear. When we were sure that no one was there or coming in, we rushed towards the ship. Luke and Han were in front of me when I heard a door open. I felt something pull me back like I was attached to some sort of bungee cord.

"No!" I screamed as a hand covered my mouth, and that familiar sound of Vader's breathing apparatus filled my ears.

"Sakura!" shouted Luke.

"Luke! No!" cried Han, grabbing at Luke's shoulder just as he pulled his lightsaber out. I heard the distinct hiss of another lightsaber as Vader held his own sword at my throat.

"Unless you want her to die, Luke Skywalker," said Vader, "you will drop your weapons and come with me."

I saw the hesitation in Luke's eyes. He already had nearly believed he had killed me once. He didn't want to experience it again. I took a deep breath and hit Vader with my technique.

While Tsunade had taught me the technique, I had not perfected it by the time the war had started. It was during my time with Vader that I had begun practicing, carefully taking my chakra and giving it the properties of electricity.

One hit was all I needed.

Vader cried out, loosening his grip on me. I grabbed his lightsaber and twisted around him before knocking him down to the ground. It wouldn't take long for him to recover, so I pinned him down just as he was trying to get up.

"Go! Both of you!" I shouted.

"No!" shouted Luke. "We came to get you! I'm not leaving without you!"

"Luke! Go! _Now!_" I screamed, surprising him. Han finally managed to pull Luke into the shuttle just as I lost my grip on Vader. He force pushed me off of him, and I hit the wall hard. I got back up unsteadily just as troopers began pouring into the hangar. Vader turned to me as the shuttle took off, calling his lightsaber back to his hand since it had been knocked away due to our scuffle._  
_

He was clutching his chest, so I knew I wasn't dead... yet. However, I could see his body trembling once more with barely controlled rage. I shrieked and fell to my knees as something curled around my heart and began its methodical crushing. Despite the pain, I glared up at him as he stood over me.

"I don't know..." I gasped, "why you want Luke... but I'm not letting you have him."

He didn't respond, and my vision went black again.

* * *

**Okay, this was a _really_ difficult chapter for me to write as I was struggling greatly with writers block. So I hope you enjoyed it. There are a few surprises next chapter. I'm thinking about Sakura meeting Grand Admiral Thrawn, and of course, the idea of having her actually meet the Emperor has crossed my mind.**

**Also, here's an important question, would you be at all interested in seeing Kuruma the Kyuubi make an appearance? (No one is going to become a jinchuriki, not Sakura, not Luke, no one. The only person I think that is capable of becoming the container of the Kyuubi is Vader/Anakin, and that's pushing it.) I'll probably put a poll on my profile.**

**We haven't even touched the _Empire Strikes Back_ yet! Who's excited for that?!**

**Reviews are love!**


	7. Executor

The next few weeks after that debacle on Kuat were complete torture.

_Literally!_

Vader took great pleasure testing my limits to see how much pain I could endure before my body just gave out, and since I was a medic and could very well heal myself, he left me to do it on my own. I tried to numb the pain with my chakra at first, but if I didn't scream or beg loud or hard enough, Vader would turn it up a notch or two. My torture finally began to slow after the _Executor_ was finished being built. I was never again allowed to leave Vader's side.

While the physical torture had subsided for the time being, the emotional torture was only just beginning.

A few months after my last meeting with Luke and six months since the destruction of the Death Star, Vader and I were onboard the newly built _Executor_, preparing the ship and the rest of Death Squadron to head for Zaloriis. Apparently the planet had begun openly declared it's independence from the Empire. They had successfully fought off their Imperial oppressors and had captured Imperial Maximilian Veers in the process.

"You told me you were trained as a medical ninja," said Vader as he lead me down the corridor. "I've never heard of a ninja."

It was the first time in weeks, perhaps even months since he had spoken to me so casually. "Ninja, or shinobi, were the main military power in my world. There were very few countries that didn't use ninja as their military. We perform missions for a fee, which can include: doing manual labor, acting as escorts, gathering secret information, carrying out assassinations, etceteras.

"However, my role as a medical-nin is slightly different from other ninjas. I am to avoid getting injured in any way because I'm usually the only medic on the team I'm assigned to, and if I get hurt, then there would be no one else to heal my other team members. My master, Tsunade, created the official system of the medical ninja along with the laws that we should abide by."

"And yet you jumped into battle against me despite this," said Vader

I tried not to flinch at the jab. "I did it to give my friends an opening to escape," I replied. "I had fully expected to die that day.

"Indeed…" he said as we stepped into a large room with nothing but crates and other equipment scattered about.

"This," he said, "is where we will do your training as my… 'apprentice'."

Even as he said it, I knew this was just going to be another way for him to try and torment me without alerting anyone else to my status as his _fake_ apprentice.

"I will be watching from the observation deck above," he continued gesturing to the series of windows near the ceiling. "You will need this."

He handed me a lightsaber which looked similar to his. I switched it on, and sure enough, a bright red beam of energy burst forth. I looked around, but I didn't see anyone or anything for me to fight. I looked over at Vader to ask him, but he was already gone. The door closed behind him.

"Okay," I said nervously. I wasn't stupid enough to go out into the middle of the room and wait for whatever was in there to sneak up behind me. I dashed for the nearest corner, the top left on the floor if you were looking from the observatory above.

For a brief moment, nothing happened. The room was completely silent. I tried to get a good look around, but my vantage point wasn't as good as I initially thought.

Focusing my chakra to my ears to heighten my hearing, I began to pick up on some footsteps headed my way. I lifted my new lightsaber, trying to remain calm. Vader had never really bothered to teach me any proper techniques with a lightsaber, so I was afraid that he had set me up with someone, or something, that actually knew what they were doing.

I was surprised at what I found instead.

"Sakura!" cried Luke, his face lighting up like it did when I last saw him.

"Luke?" I said in disbelief as I turned off the saber. He was joined by Han, Leia and Chewbacca. "What—? How did you—?" I stuttered stupidly.

Luke's smile grew as he pulled me into his arms. "I'm so glad you're okay."

It sounded like Luke; it looked like Luke, but something was wrong. "Luke…?"

"Sakura…" he whispered just before I felt something blazing hot pierce my abdomen and exit my back, just inches from my spinal cord.

I cried out from the pain as Luke, or whatever he was, stepped back. That easy smile he had turned downright malicious as he pulled out his lightsaber. Han and Leia were pulling out blasters. Vader must have told these things, whatever they were, what he knew about my healing abilities.

"You're not Luke," I whimpered through the pain, trying to heal myself.

"Yes, I am," he said in a mockingly innocent voice as he raised his saber for a final blow.

"No… you're _not!_" I screamed, my enhanced fist making contact with his jaw, sending him flying into the others.

I ran past them around the rim of the room before ducking behind one of the crates for cover from the blaster fire. I began quickly patching myself up as well as numbing the pain with my chakra.

There was no way that was Luke. That much I was certain. I only knew Luke for a few days, but I knew that he would never raise a hand to me, let alone his lightsaber (in part because he had seen my handiwork inside the cantina on Tatooine, but I digress). Even I could tell, in my narrow-mindedness and naiveté, Luke was kind and caring to everyone he met.

Much like Naruto was…

I tried this time to focus on my hearing, making it as sensitive as I could make it. I wanted to see if I could hear anything in the way they walked that would give away what they were since I doubted anyone besides myself knew the Transformation technique. I heard footsteps approaching my area, and I fought to remain calm.

"Sakura!" Luke called. I swallowed hard, trying to hear something, anything that would give me a clue as to who or what these things were.

I heard it. The sound of the electronic gears of a droid.

My excitement over my recognition lasted all of two seconds when I heard the buzz of a lightsaber. I jumped up and over the crate I was hiding behind, just as the fake Luke was cutting the crate in half. Our blades met in a flash of white light.

"You're a droid!" I shouted. Luke look surprised before the image of his face faded, revealing the metal being beneath.

"You are good," said the mechanical voice. "How did you know?"

"Lucky guess," I said as Luke's face reappeared. I wasn't too worried that the others would try to join in since I had sent shadow clones to deal with them. That left me with only a quarter of my real strength. If I didn't want to waste chakra, the first blow absolutely _had _to be the last.

I brought my blade up to parry the droid's strike. Instead of rebounding like I was expecting, the droid whirled the blade and knocked mine out of my hand. I barely dodged the next few blows, the hum of the blue energy beam loud in my ears, but as he changed his rhythm in an attempt to throw me off balance, I found an opening in his defense and took it.

I punched the droid as hard as I could manage without wasting too much chakra. The head popped clean off. The rest of the droid staggered, but I wasn't taking any chances and brought my foot down on top it. Screws and parts went flying as I shattered the main body.

My shadow clones had only half my luck. The droid pretending to be Leia had been destroyed in a similar fashion. However, the droids pretending to be Han and Chewie had managed to destroy my two clones fighting them, but not before they had lost their blaster and 'crossbow' respectively. Now it was purely hand to hand combat between me, my one other clone and the two droids.

I was breathing heavily at this point, having used a lot of my chakra on clones and enhanced strength. Gathering what little I had left, both my clone and I rushed our last two opponents. I went for the 'Chewie' droid while my clone went for 'Han.'

Dodging several of 'Chewie's' strikes, I ducked down and tried to kick the droids feet from underneath it. The droid jumped, dodging me, and tried to bring its leg down on top of me. I rolled out of the way just in time. The floor cracked from the impact made by the droid.

In the distance, I heard the smashing of metallic parts followed by the familiar 'poof' sound. My clone had just successfully destroyed the Han droid, leaving me with just the one. I was running out of strength and fast when I saw the lightsaber Vader had given me just passed the droid. I ran at the droid and instead of attacking, I slid right underneath it before jumping back up and running for my lightsaber.

I could hear the droid follow as it tried to catch me, but I snatched up the lightsaber just before it managed to get a hold of me. With one swift strike, I jabbed the blade into the droid and sliced upwards, cutting the head clean in two.

The droid fell into a heap on the floor, and I followed it onto my knees after turning off my sword, struggling to catch my breath. I heard the doors to the room open, and the sound of Vader's breathing apparatus made my stomach churn.

"Vey interesting," he said, clearly pleased with the results of his little test. "How are you able to create clones like that?"

"The same way," I said, panting for breath, "I crushed those droids: with my chakra."

"I see," he said. I stood up rather shakily, my chest heaving from the strain. "Be sure to get some rest. You're going to need it."

* * *

_Three months later…_

During the battle on Zaloriis, as I watched men on both sides die fighting for what they believed in, a question for myself began forming in my mind. Even back home, it was never a question I had really considered asking myself, but now that I was in this dimension, in this galaxy at war, I had to ask. What was my purpose for being here?

I still didn't have an answer, even after returning to Vjun.

I let out a sigh as I looked back down at my data pad. I had been out in the gardens of this place a few times, and some of the plants I had found were foreign to me. When I had been learning to read, Vader had given me a data pad, and I was using it to research the different kinds of plants here in the gardens.

I was just entering certain bits of information when I heard the shuffling of metal feet approach me from behind. I stood up and turned, chakra focused into my fists. Ever since Vader's little 'test' on the _Executor_, I had been a little on edge, not knowing if the next opponent would come while I wasn't expecting it.

"Excuse me, Miss Sakura," said Teefour. "Lord Vader wishes to speak with you."

I nodded, and headed back inside. I found him in one of the hallways over looking the gardens. He was gazing intently at something. Looking down, I realized he was staring at the spot where I had been studying the plants.

"You asked for me?" I said.

He pulled his eyes away from the gardens and looked at me closely. We stood there, looking at each other for several minutes before he turned back to look out at the gardens.

"You don't look anything like her," he muttered, running a hand through his newly drown hair

"Excuse me?" I asked, puzzled by the softness in his voice.

"Yet… you remind me of her in everything you do," he continued, completely ignoring me.

I frowned, confused by his rambling. He was comparing me to another woman he knew, but I had not seen any evidence to suggest that anyone else besides the two of us lived here, let alone another woman.

_What about that nightgown? _My inner self asked.

I gathered a little of my courage. "Are you talking about the owner of that night gown?"

He glared at me, eyes flashing, and I braced myself for the inevitable grip around my throat or in my chest. It never came. Instead, he just let out a tired sigh.

"Yes, that gown belonged to my late wife," he said as he turned to back out at the gardens. "I had thought I had killed her…"

I wasn't sure how to respond to that.

"…but I couldn't have," he continued. "She had to be alive to give birth."

"Birth?" I asked.

"Yes," he said turning back to me. "Luke Skywalker, he is my son."

I tried not to stare stupidly at him. I could see the similarities, now that I had nearly finished healing him. He and Luke had similar facial structures and the same color eyes. Luke's eyes, however, were warm and inviting. Vader's were ice cold.

"So that's why… why you were so angry when you saw me wearing that gown," I said, changing the subject.

"Yes," he said. "I don't know why, but you remind me of her." His eyes glazed over as he continued. "Your presence in the Force, it is different from any being I have ever encountered. It's almost like the Force flows… backwards around you, but despite that fundamental difference, something about your presence… calms me…"

I was a little surprised by this sudden admission. Although I had no idea what he was talking about. If I had the ability to calm the rage and hate in others, why didn't it work for Sasuke or even Naruto? He seemed to shake himself out of it. Looking back at me, his gaze grew serious.

"My master is through waiting," he said. "He demands to see you."

My heart stilled for a moment. "We're leaving for Coruscant."

I could feel panic swelling in my chest. "You mean… the Emperor?" I asked

"Yes," he replied. "Go to the ship. I'll meet you there."

I found myself rooted to the floor as he left. I was already terrified of Vader. I couldn't bear to think what his master was like.

I began to tremble, trying desperately to keep myself from hyperventilating. My head began to spin, and for a moment, I thought I was going to pass out from the terror. I couldn't meet the Emperor, I had heard too many frightening stories from some of the officers on board the _Executor_.

But how was I going to get away?

_"Sakura."_

I jumped, startled by the sound. Perhaps I had finally gone crazy, but that voice sounded familiar. "Ben?"

_"Shh… don't speak aloud." _The voice in my head said softly.

_Okay… _I thought, hoping that I was actually hearing Kenobi's voice and not just going crazy. _Can you hear my thoughts?_

_"Yes, I can. I am going to help you escape."_

_How? Part of the reason I am unable to get away is that I don't know how to fly a ship._

_"Don't worry, I will guide you through it when the time is right."_

There was silence after that, but I had an idea of what I needed to do. I ran back to my room and quickly put my regular outfit on underneath my officer uniform. I would just have to wear the Imperial boots since I couldn't put on my shinobi sandals. I carefully slipped Naruto's special kunai into my boot, hoping no one would notice it, and took one last look around the room since it was probably the last time I would see it.

"Time to go," I said to myself as I turned for the door.

_I'm coming Luke..._

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**Thank you so much for all your wonderful reviews, follows, favorites, and general support. I love you all! This early release was my way of thanking you! So much updating for every "other" Tuesday. :)**

**So, Obi-Wan is going to help her escape from Vader. Will it work? If it does, where will she go? Hoth? Tatooine? Maybe... Dagobah? You'll have to wait and see.**

**Reviews are loved and welcomed!**


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